In the Aftermath...
Slowing thoughts and speeding actions,
pacifying inner factions -
of intentions I take stock.
I will synchronize my clock.
Life's too short to be caught racing
when the world that you are facing
makes you want to turn time back
as you race the same old track.
You may want to dig your heels in,
but you'll go into a tailspin
if you spur on the same horse
when you ought to just change course.
So change your inner dialogue,
don't pander to a demagogue,
assess what you might think.
Life ends in just a blink.
And your thoughts will all be banished
when the rest of you has vanished
but your actions will live on
when the rest of you is gone.
So transform thought into action -
it's time to gain some traction
making earth a better place
and not an endurance race.
Sharon Flood Kasenberg
A lot has happened in the past few weeks. The world lost a couple of great men, and the United States elected a new President - a man that almost all are united in believing will make huge changes, but whether this stir-up on the political front will lead to positive or negative change is a huge source of divisiveness.
All of the events I've mentioned have left me feeling contemplative, not exactly morose, but sober. My brain goes into overdrive wondering how Americans voted someone I see as despotic into power. Why should he be rising in power just as people more deserving are powerless, afraid, sick, dying...gone.
In the aftermath of the election I've participated in a lot of conversations about what this new American president will do to the United States, trade agreements, the economy, international relations and the whole wide world. I've listened, nodded and added about a nickel's worth of commentary. I'm not wise, and not terribly politically astute. I'm not even American, so some could argue that the election doesn't have much to do with me. Still, it doesn't feel right - I'm uneasy about the outcome and feel an increased wariness toward mankind in general terms. That isn't right either. How should I respond to this change?
Here's what I've concluded:
I can listen. When I agree I can nod my head. When I disagree I can try to assuage the fear that lies behind the anger. I can respond civilly when others express opinions that seem ignorant, racist, sexist, bigoted and uninformed. Whether I like what they say or not, they can say what they wish.
I can diffuse arguments by refusing to emotionally engage with those who express their opinions in ways that seem designed to incite my wrath or abase me, or anyone else. I can choose to walk away and not listen too.
I can try to be a better, kinder, more inclusive person. I can seek opportunities to engage and converse with people who aren't anything like me. I can try to disprove my own biases by looking past superficial differences. By working on improving myself, and my ability to forge a greater variety of relationships, I can make my own little corner of the world a nicer place to be.
I can remember that this situation - the American election, and the looming shadow of the incumbent President, will pass. The Donald will not become President for life, and unless he initiates the apocalypse, anything else he does can eventually be undone. While there's life, there's hope - which leads to my thoughts on the passing of two different men.
In the aftermath of Leonard Cohen's death I've thought a lot about the power of words. I've considered how enriched the masses can feel when one poet turns thoughts into poetry and music. I've raised a glass to Leonard, listened to his poems quoted and sung, and heard stories from others about how his words affected them, influenced their lives and made them think. I've seen diverse people gathered round a table reflecting on the life, the death, and words of one man, and I've seen how those words, read and quoted, connected them.
Life is too short to leave important words unsaid, unwritten, unexpressed. It's not enough to think good thoughts when those thoughts never bear fruit. It's time to write your words, speak your words, and act on the things you say. It's time to create something of your life that will unite a ragtag crew around a dining room table someday.
In the aftermath of the death of someone I barely knew, I was able to talk to, walk with, listen to, and share love and wisdom with someone I love a lot. I became better able to see how the gentle, unassuming people we encounter on the journey affect us more profoundly than the blustering posturing, pandering speechifying wannabe politicians in the world.
By spending time in the space of someone so recently departed, I could see how he'd imbued his environment with his essence. It was a calm, peaceful, simple, earthy room - and if the door blew open once or twice while I was there, my rest was still easy. I saw plants he'd tended, things he'd built, and a philosophy of simplicity in evidence everywhere.
In the aftermath of his death I want to work harder at being humble, grateful and peaceable. I've been reminded that life is short - none of us know how many days we have - we must spend them in the best ways possible. Take time to express appreciation to the people you love most. Brighten someone's day with a compliment or a smile - they'll remember it. Live graciously with those with whom you disagree - life is too short to waste time accumulating enemies. Live simply and purposefully. Create something, whether it's a work of art, a poem, a garden or something as mundane as a tie rack - just something, anything, that will outlast you. Leave some sort of legacy that can connect those who gather when you're gone.
Decide now what you'll leave behind you. Live the stories you want told around a table. Write the songs, the poems, the love letters you want written. Leave no important words unsaid.
Life is short. Consider how you want to be considered in the aftermath.
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