By Marguerite Jill Dye
I feel as if I’m abandoning a sinking ship, leaving America for a pilgrimage across Spain during this perilous time of crises, turmoil, and uncertainty. Keeping up with the news, one can only wonder, has Armageddon begun? Scenes from “Mad Max” and “Water World” flash before my eyes, movies I never would freely choose to watch.
Rising water temperatures are causing more powerful and devastating storms like hurricanes Harvey, Katrina, and Tropical Storm Irene. Denial of science doth not sound policy make.
As in Texas, irresponsible government deregulation, insufficient planning for catastrophic weather events, and profit-over-people industries are putting lives, towns, cities, and the environment at risk and in peril. By not revealing the real statistics and dangers of their plants, residents are unaware that their lives are at risk, not only from the storm’s fury, rising waters, and insufficient dams and waterways, but also from resulting chemical fires, explosions, and ecological contamination.
Yet, regardless of our government’s dysfunction and the fact that some families feared fleeing to safety due to Washington’s threats against immigrants, disaster and doom are not all that’s occurring: ordinary people have stepped up to help.
Before the storm arrived, another kind of movement had just begun: one of raising awareness, change, and transformation which started spreading out like sunrise rays. From a history of slavery, racism, discrimination, and injustice, too long denied and brushed aside, we are at last recognizing that words and symbols have power. They affirm love or hate. The prejudice and poisonous rhetoric that has festered below the skin’s surface is now bubbling up and has begun to burst. The shift is occurring, in spite of powerful evildoers who have lost their way in a web of hatred, bigotry, deception, and corruption.
I can feel it – the pendulum has swung so far to the right, alt right, that the world’s off kilter. It feels like the disk is about to let loose and head for outer space! But it hangs on, ever so slightly, and is just about to swing back towards the center. This grand swing will carry with it the renewal of our commitment to American and global values of equality, diversity, and love.
Like in the Catalan city of Barcelona, where the king and queen of Spain and other Spanish leaders marched together against terrorism with the people of Cataluña. After centuries of Spanish oppression against the Catalan people, their history, language, and culture, Spanish leaders reached out to their Catalan brothers and sisters in solidarity, against violence, hatred, and fear. They spoke up against the side of terror and hatred, and for the side of the unity and love so beautifully demonstrated by the people of Barcelona and Cataluña, whose voices I will soon share.
I wake up in the middle of the night, with a certainty that we need a new modus operandi; a new system and way of living and being that raises up the downtrodden and enables and embraces the fulfillment of human potential. Now our nation has an opportunity to make amends and change our ways by demonstrating in our hearts what’s written in our laws. I want to shout out, “Let’s choose love!”
We are only one decision away from making the decision to change our future by each person fully embracing and joyfully demonstrating who they really are. Many individuals are living in love, which is our true identity and natural state, but the rules, institutions, and systems we have established are failing. Our political systems, economic institutions, ecological, social, and spiritual systems are now producing the opposite of peace and harmony.
An awakened species sees the unity of all life and knows that we are one; an awakened species tells the truth and acts on it; an awakened species sees what works and repeats it. If we want to live in peace, joy and love, we can’t use violence to solve the problem; to live in good health, we can’t eat and drink life-sapping foods and drinks; condemning people through punishment, insufficiency, and “justice” are not the actions of an awakened species. Stewardship replaces ownership. We are given stewardship of our children and land by our community by being good stewards. Highly evolved beings share.
Ordinary people change the course of history, but we must choose to do so. How? We can be aware of our alignment with the Divine by asking ourselves often: What aspect of my divinity does this circumstance allow me to demonstrate? What does this have to do with my soul’s agenda? By sharing our progress and transition, we can help others connect with their own divinity and be a part of the change for good.
This is a powerful time to return to Barcelona, and to the Camino de Santiago to absorb its healing powers, renew hope for our nation and world, and pick up the pulse of pilgrims from myriad nations. I look forward to sharing European messages and insights in the next few columns.
Marguerite Jill Dye is an artist and writer who divides her time between the Green Mountains of Vermont and Florida’s Gulf Coast.
