Over at my daily blog, I'm sharing old posts. Specifically, they are from a couple years ago, when we were trying to figure out was happening. As I read my words, I thought, "That was some good writing in the middle of deep uncertainty and unknown loss."
At the time, I didn't know how much loss there would be. Loss of life, loss of confidence, loss of relationship, loss of direction.
In the middle of all the current chaos, I'm trying to shrink my perspective. Rather than thinking about all that is going on, I'm trying to attend to my responsibilities, my opportunities, my conversations.
It's hard. I want to be widely helpful. Or, more honestly, I want to be widely read. But too often that looks like being widely worried about everything that everyone might be worried about.
That is unsustainable.
This morning, reading Emily P, Freeman's, The Next Right Think: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions, I read this: "We can't prevent storms from coming, but we can decide not to invent our own."
And in the ancient songs of Israel, I read
My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.
Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore. (Psalm 131)
There is value, I think, in being here and now.
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