Tea & Journaling for the Revolution

It is election week and our country is undergoing another big transformation moment in the midst of a wildly transformative year. I sometimes wonder if our leaders or yore knew of the catalytic nature of Samhain and therefore scheduled our elections to coincide with this topsy-turvy time of year. I wonder if they knew that in order to shift the leadership of our nation, we’d need to call in the wisdom and fortitude of our ancestors. Or perhaps it was just a good time, because harvest was over and the roads were still open before winter blanketed us with snow. Either way, this is a good time of year to renew ourselves.

This week, facilitator and leadership guide Anya Hankin sent out a newsletter filled with wisdom. Her words have been ringing in my ear all week:

And while the presidential election is still undetermined, so much is blatantly clear. Regardless of who wins, our work — the work of collective liberation, of rooted leadership, of genuine community care, of full creative expression — is crucial.

The call could not be louder or more explicit. The oppressive systems that privilege and protect whiteness must be dismantled. The tangible work of changemaking and culture-shifting must be prioritized. True reciprocal and interconnected communities must be uplifted. New leadership is rising. We are rising.

My mission as an artist and change-maker remains the same: to liberate myself and those around me by using art to alchemize pain and confusion into joy and connection. I am here to answer Anya’s call and continue doing the work that will draw us all closer to right-relationship and collective liberation.

And today? Today, I am digging back into that work with a little self-reflection.

Tea and journaling has been my medicine this week. It's been a nourishing way to slow down and take care of my nerves during this election. Sometimes the revolution needs a self-care day. Today, as I turn down the noise and notice the beauty that surrounds me, I'm reminded of a passage from John O'Donohue's blessing "For One Who Is Exhausted":

Become inclined to watch the way of rain
When it falls slow and free.

Imitate the habit of twilight,
Taking time to open the well of color
That fostered the brightness of day.

Draw alongside the silence of stone
Until its calmness can claim you.
Be excessively gentle with yourself.

Friends, I hope you are being excessively gentle with yourself today. Trust that we are the ones we have been waiting for. Trust that we are capable of creating true justice and true connection. This is a revolution of belonging and today, it starts with tea and journaling. Today, it starts right here with you and me.