Approaching this theme initially left me paralyzed for a few days before I could finally write. There have been so many recent global events impacting different communities in different ways every day, in addition to the ongoing systemic issues silently operating in the background. In these moments, it can be overwhelming and hard to be optimistic. In conflict management, it can be challenging to be hopeful for sustainable changes in this political climate. It seems we are constantly putting out fires instead of preventing them from starting. I wanted to write something that acknowledges all of this while offering a glimpse of practical hope in our courageous responsibility to unite in solidarity to persevere.
Courage is not the absence of fear
But the will to move forward despite it
At times it seems as if this will is lost
But it softly treads in the pits of our hearts
We just have to be tenacious enough to find it
It is here in the midst of the darkness
That we find the courage to light our own paths
And hope that others find their way
Along the trails we’ve set forth
Letting the stones I lay guide you around the turbulence of pain
Avoiding the mistakes that need not be repeated
Straight through the efflorescent promenade towards a future of enlightenment
As the world continues to chaotically turn
And our realities are flipped upside down
As our backs are pushed into the corner
It is only hand in hand that we can lift ourselves off the ground
The bravery of exposing our vulnerabilities
Bridges the gaps of misunderstandings
And replaces our indifferences with empathy
And balances the weight of our burdens
It is easy to allow defeat to swallow us whole
It takes resilience to keep standing when we get knocked down yet again
But in the moments that we feel too weak to move forward on our own
It is a solidarity of our goodwill
That reminds us that our chances of preserving are so much stronger
Together.