Grounding

The moon is full, lighting the sky before the sun takes over today. The temperature is 55 degrees fahrenheit. Today is Wednesday.

At midweek, the news tells the world that wars continue, the national election options are looking grim, and that the stock markets are doing very well. It's a curiosity as to how things are connected. But they are.

Living in these times presents a daily opportunity to check in on oneself. Are you one who survives by ignoring it all? Are you one who decides it is time to jump in to the messiest part of the picture? Are you one who recognizes that what matters is that you are aware of what is (and is not) happening?

These days, it is a good thing to have a way to stay grounded. Whether it is a meditation practice, an exercises routine, anything that brings you back to now. With all that is happening, remembering where you are as much as who you are, matters. If one is fortunate enough not to have to worry about basic survival, then the luxury of asking questions about purpose and service can be answered with actions. The actions that flow from the question are your gift to the world.

Given that there are so many places in need of someone to care, someone to see and hear the struggles of the world - almost anything that is done to ease the struggle is worth doing. Keeping in mind that there will be modest improvements, and perhaps even nothing visible that changes in the present, it is knowing that your small gesture and intention will add to a larger purpose that will make a difference. It is a convenience to say, "My effort won't make a difference." That thinking is what makes people do nothing. And in the face of so much struggle, we cannot afford to do nothing. Everything goes into the mix of life.

Knowing, feeling, and understanding are connected in ways that create the path toward right living. And in right living, it is not possible to feel defeated when it comes to realizing that just having the choice to act or engage is a privilege. Then, with deep reflection, answers come. It happens every time. The stillness, the silencing of one's own narrative voices gives way to space for realizations. And those realizations give way to a kind of clarity that allows a person to find peace in the middle of chaos. If this sounds ridiculous, try it.

In trying, you will struggle because the head is too full and these days, the heart may be heavy. Your own struggle will demonstrate how the inner self is so powerful. The outer self may appear still but inside is roiling with thought and feeling that doesn't yet know how to engage the true heart-mind. Like all things we humans need to do in order to become better beings: Try.