how civilizations heal

~Ukraine Flag~

by Setsiri Silapapsuwanchai

If, like me, you are deeply affected by the war in Ukraine, you may find it difficult to put your thoughts and feelings into words. Thankfully, others have taken a stab at it for us. They have shared inspiration and consolation with us, both with and without words:

~Tower of Mothers~

A 1937 sculpture by German artist Käthe Kollwitz that

depicts women standing in a circle to protect their children from the horrors of war.

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The Peace of Wild Things

~Wendell Berry~

When despair for the world grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake rests

in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water

and I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

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Hope springs eternal.

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Cultivate EQUANIMITY:

mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper,

especially in a difficult situation.

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~I've got peace like a river~

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Mahatma Gandhi, on nonviolence:

First they ignore you,

then they laugh at you, 

then they fight you,

then you win.

What inspires you? Where do you turn for comfort? For solace? For peace? 

How do you make sense of life as it unfolds?

"There is no time for despair,

no place for self-pity,

no need for silence,

no room for fear.

We speak, we write,

we do language. 

That is how civilizations heal."

~Toni Morrison~

How will you help?

jan