Dear Friend
I wonder how you are coming out of the Christmas holidays? For us the holidays continue over the 12 days of Christmas, which is still part of the Italian tradition amongst others.
It was fun to be a tourist in London yesterday accompanying visiting friends on their first visit to the UK. It was extraordinarily windy, so much so that Ale’s woollen hat went flying three stories into the air and one of the huge Christmas trees was blown over. I like it when the wind rips through the city, it felt like nature clearing out the old stale air and bringing in something new and fresh. Reminding us of her presence, not to get too hypnotised by the shiny storefronts.
Something got me thinking about snowflakes, maybe the decorations in Covent Garden or the concerning lack of snow for several years in the French Alps. I’ve been thinking a lot about bullying recently. Being bullied or attacked is for many one of the earliest types of trauma we are exposed to.
In a way it seems to me that we are all being bullied by voices and bad actors insisting that violence is justified and the way to peace is to annihilate our fellow humans. There is the unimaginable trauma of those subjected to the slaughter and so are we who are cowed by the onslaught.
It’s easy for the human mind to desire revenge, the seduction of violence as an immediate answer, but we know violence begets violence. These are tough times. I hope you are able to find joy in the small things.
Peace is one breath away. If we take a moment to breath in, pay attention to the simple act of taking in air, hold it, noticing the moment that we are in, and letting go. We can bring ourselves back into the present moment.
We can be kind to ourselves and we can look for each other.
I do not believe that humans are murderous creatures. We can become so when we are traumatised and forced to live in environments that do not meet our needs.
The way I’ve heard people using the term snowflake as an insult -that’s bullying. Mind boggling as it is, snowflakes are truly unique from one another. If you see one magnified on it’s own it is wonderfully beautiful. Like us, its physical form does not last, but returns ultimately to the oceans from which it came.
If you’ve ever witnessed the power of an avalanche you’ll know the immense force a unified body of temporary, delicate and beautiful individuals can muster when we move together.
Anyway, I’m thinking of you. So many of us care about a kinder more connected world. I don’t have any answers about what we can do to bring peace, but it will come through our increasing connection to peace.
It is here now.
Till tomorrow
Much Love
Mike