In Response to Yesterday’s News

As we take in the news, and as I view my social media feeds, many are afraid from yesterday’s political violence,

And

Many are afraid of potential political violence, with concerns that more could follow in a variety of ways and directions.

Recently, a friend asked me, “How do you calm your nervous system in the face of scary political possibilities?”

I am no expert on that, including sometimes, even for myself. But I think what helps me most is a commitment to live the same values, no matter what sort of outcomes are at play, no matter who is in power, and no matter what circumstances are unfolding. I don’t always do that perfectly, by the way. Not at all. But we bring ourselves and one another back repeatedly to these consistent values and commitments.

And by consistent, no-matter-what values, I don’t mean ‘just ideas,’ important though they may be, and I definitely don’t mean punditry. I mean commitments to one another.

This is about lifting people up. It’s about community care. It’s about creating a safe world to live in — in our political realities; in the grocery stores; in the schools; in the houses of worship; in the workplaces; and in our care, connections, and commitments for people in other world regions facing immense violence and trauma — some of them, from our own nation’s bombs. It’s about proclaiming that our lives have value, our neighbors’ lives have value, and our world has value.

Mother Theresa used to say, “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we belong to one another.”

This about making sure that people have that they need — that people can eat. That people can have a community surround them during a health crisis. That people can know they can call each other and have a listening ear, a soft place to land, and an actual tangible way providing resources for one another.

Our fears are valid. Our capabilities to act in these ways, individually and collectively, are immense.

That’s what helps me calm my nervous system. That’s what moves me to keep acting, imperfectly but in actuality, in these directions.

Support and care to all who are afraid, or who have slept less tonight than they needed. We’ll need to keep lifting one another up — in all these ways listed above and more, and of course, right here.

— Renee Roederer