When The World Is On Fire
“Anyone can slay a dragon ...but try waking up every morning and loving the world all over again. That's what takes a real hero.”—Brian Andreas
This was going to be a piece about the difference between excellence and ambition. We tend to conflate the two, and I think this can create internal struggles that prevent us from understanding that we can work towards excellence without necessarily being focused on climbing up a self-perpetuating ladder. I’ve sat down to write this excellence versus ambition blog entry a few times over the last month, and felt distracted, and moved on to something else.
I told someone the other day that “authenticity is my brand”, so in that spirit, I can’t write a blog post without sharing why I’m distracted when I sit down to write, and what I’ve been feeling over the past several weeks to months watching the level of cruelty and chaos inflicted at the hands of our government increase exponentially. State and government sanctioned violence has targeted and disproportionately impacted Black and brown bodies and communities for generations, and we are not only being subjected to our leaders’ attempts to justify and embrace this violence, but also to them telling us not to believe what we are bearing witness to. We are seeing adults and children as young as toddlers grabbed off the streets and from their homes, ICE agents breaking windows and pulling people out of cars, protestors and people simply trying to help their neighbors threatened, beaten, and even killed by these same agents, many of whom believe they are acting with impunity. On a more global level, we’re watching our current administration casually threaten to invade sovereign nations, reworking a world order and relationships that have taken decades to create.
Every effort to push back and help each other is important and inspiring, from leading a protest on the frontlines to quietly making sure that our neighbors at higher risk have groceries or a ride to work/school, writing and calling our representatives, contributing money, mutual aid, running or donating to food and clothing drives, pressuring businesses that are enabling this overreach, volunteering anywhere that needs volunteers, etc. These efforts help to build community, instill hope, and make us feel less powerless. But the reality is that through all of this, we have these daily lives and expectations to attend to. Many of us need (and dare I say want) to work, have families we want to keep healthy, safe, and happy, and children we want to see thrive, and joy we want to experience. How does this happen when the world feels like it’s on fire?
I wish I had a simple solution for myself as well as everyone else, but I think something I often say to clients can guide us here. Reflect on your values and let them drive you. What matters to you? What do you care about? I know for me, I value empathy, authenticity, respect, showing up for others, listening, and truth. When the world feels cruel and completely out of control, I strive to approach each day with these values centered and driving my actions. When I’m faltering, I try to get back to these driving values as soon as possible. I also allow myself grace and rest. Sometimes I need a nap, sometimes I need to read something a little fluffy, or sometimes I need a long walk to get myself back on track. And somehow I manage to wake up most days loving this broken world (and the people in it) all over again. I wish this for you too.