Some fragmented thoughts on the discipline of hope, garden therapy, berry crisp, an essay for these violent times, and the achievement of non-aggression
spot on. I keep focusing on my circle of control. What is mine to do and what isn't. I am staying away from the blow by blow news cycle and focusing on loving people. I am sharing your discipline of hope.
I'm not sure *everyone* is doing the best they can haha. There are some leaders out there who maybe could be trying a little harder, at least in the areas of neighborliness and consideration of the least of these.
Just reading your title in my email gave me a sigh of relief. Gardening in our tiny plot we find the one winter squash plant is overrunning half the garden and in the other half, the tomatoes are taller than I am! I think instead of adding an aggression to the world I will go into my massage room and listen and minister to my four clients today. :-) Thank you for your thoughts and words, as always, Jeff. And for the link to Guernica.
This newbie gardener is also having a bumper crop of potatoes down here in zone 7. Tomatoes and carrots too. Sadly the squash vine borer wreaked its destruction before I could get it under control. All shall be well, just not in ways we expect, I suppose.
Wonderful that so many things are doing well in your garden. Carrots are so fickle. Some of mine are doing reasonably well, while others never even germinated.
Thank you, Jeff. I really needed this today. As I sit on my porch having coffee on this early Midwest morning, I feel my tension slowly unwinding. I am still afraid, but you have reminded me that the way forward is just that...forward. And there is much beauty and grace to carry our hope. I know you miss Fozzie. I recognize that loss and grief. Prayers..
I am drowning in grief over the sudden loss of the Love of my life. Your words today and my hands in my own garden bring a tiny bit of solace. Not hope. But some bit of solace at least. Thank you for pastoring me this morning Jeff.
Perennial hope…I so appreciate this message, Jeff — so in keeping with Julian of Norwich’s “all shall be well…” and I love Cynthia Bourgeault’s short but profound book, “Mystical Hope”. Have been thinking of your deep lament at the loss of your beloved Fozzie. What a blessing it was that you found each other. May God bless and keep you in your grief and in your healing.
Jeff….there is an overflowing of loveliness in your words. I’ve shared with you about my challenges in the kitchen and so appreciate you sharing about your labor of love for family and friends. I also have to believe that “Everything Will Be Ok” in the kitchen as I continue to try and bring joy to my space. This summer I am tending to my rose bushes and planted my first garden. I have much to learn but have enjoyed the process. Thank you for your hope filled message here and on Sunday morning.
Thank you Jeff! Needed reminder of the community of hope. And particularly needed the reminder that if resisting adding to the aggression is all I can manage today maybe that's adequate.
I'm still grieving my Sammy who rescued me 11 years ago. He set the bar too high, I'm afraid, for another dog. He's been gone since March 5 and I'm still so sad. Sending you love and hugs in your memories of Fozz
I disagree. I think that they are just as trapped by their privilege as others are by their lack of privilege. They are products of the stories that they were told and the stories that they tell themselves. They have to suffer profound disconnection, because they lack the skills to connect well. I like Acts 26:18 which says 'open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God' because it reminds me that they can't see what they can't see. Our leaders are a reflection of us. That is the good thing and the crappy thing about democracy. I am focusing on what I can control and what I can't. When I am feeling despair, my mantra is 'circle of control, circle of control, circle of control. Thank you for being such a blessing to me.
I do agree with most of what you're saying. but sometimes—and, to be clear, I am not saying that this is the case with your use of the phrase—I hear, "Everyone is doing the best they can," as a sort of quick absolution. In some situations, it can even seem like a casual dismissal of someone else's legitimate claims of harm or grievance.
Just reflecting on my own choices and my own actions, there are absolutely times when I am not doing the best I can. In those moments, it's my responsibility to be self-aware, make amends for whatever hurt I've caused, and act on my knowledge that I can actually do better. So that's what I mean when I make the case that I don't actually think everyone is doing the best they can.
Hope is a very tricky concept for me, especially right now when I'm hoping for some very immediate things personally and also generally hoping for a better future than the one I fear will come to pass here in the U.S. I have to remind myself over and over again that I don't need to FEEL hope as long as I'm ACTING like I feel hope— cultivating my garden, doing my voting research, going to medical appointments, cooking dinner, babysitting for a friend. Doing what's right in front of me without worrying about the outcome has been saving my life lately, but it can still be hard.
Your title caught my attention because I've always hated that expression. Especially now, since my daughter has been dealing with cancer and horrible side effects for the last two years. The FB post comment, Everything will be Ok, makes me rage. A dismissal of my grief, her suffering,and our collective pain.
I too am a gardener and have found it one of my only places of true solace. I understand about the hope one can find and plant in the garden. It's the only place where everything seems to find it's place. Life, death, grief, joy.
Anyway....i appreciate the new perspective you've given me on the saying, everything will be ok. Perhaps it doesn't have to be trite. Perhaps it can encompass all of it.
Tai, I am so glad you shared this comment, because I, too, have not really liked this saying. It has so often felt to me like a way to rush past what's hard and what's painful. I suppose, like so many other things, it doesn't have to be only one thing. From one mouth, it certainly can be that. But from another, it can take on an entirely different sense. I hope that's true, anyway.
Thank you for taking the time to add your perspective and wisdom.
Beautiful, Jeff. I so enjoy your thoughts. Say hello to your sunflowers for me.
Thank you for the words “Everything Will Be OK” as the first notification I saw this morning. ❤️
spot on. I keep focusing on my circle of control. What is mine to do and what isn't. I am staying away from the blow by blow news cycle and focusing on loving people. I am sharing your discipline of hope.
I also remind myself often that I am doing the best that I can - so are everyone else.
I'm not sure *everyone* is doing the best they can haha. There are some leaders out there who maybe could be trying a little harder, at least in the areas of neighborliness and consideration of the least of these.
Just reading your title in my email gave me a sigh of relief. Gardening in our tiny plot we find the one winter squash plant is overrunning half the garden and in the other half, the tomatoes are taller than I am! I think instead of adding an aggression to the world I will go into my massage room and listen and minister to my four clients today. :-) Thank you for your thoughts and words, as always, Jeff. And for the link to Guernica.
This newbie gardener is also having a bumper crop of potatoes down here in zone 7. Tomatoes and carrots too. Sadly the squash vine borer wreaked its destruction before I could get it under control. All shall be well, just not in ways we expect, I suppose.
Wonderful that so many things are doing well in your garden. Carrots are so fickle. Some of mine are doing reasonably well, while others never even germinated.
Thank you, Jeff. I really needed this today. As I sit on my porch having coffee on this early Midwest morning, I feel my tension slowly unwinding. I am still afraid, but you have reminded me that the way forward is just that...forward. And there is much beauty and grace to carry our hope. I know you miss Fozzie. I recognize that loss and grief. Prayers..
I am drowning in grief over the sudden loss of the Love of my life. Your words today and my hands in my own garden bring a tiny bit of solace. Not hope. But some bit of solace at least. Thank you for pastoring me this morning Jeff.
Cindy…I am so sorry. Holding you close in prayer this morning. 💗
Sending tender care your way as you navigate this profound grief.
Perennial hope…I so appreciate this message, Jeff — so in keeping with Julian of Norwich’s “all shall be well…” and I love Cynthia Bourgeault’s short but profound book, “Mystical Hope”. Have been thinking of your deep lament at the loss of your beloved Fozzie. What a blessing it was that you found each other. May God bless and keep you in your grief and in your healing.
Jeff….there is an overflowing of loveliness in your words. I’ve shared with you about my challenges in the kitchen and so appreciate you sharing about your labor of love for family and friends. I also have to believe that “Everything Will Be Ok” in the kitchen as I continue to try and bring joy to my space. This summer I am tending to my rose bushes and planted my first garden. I have much to learn but have enjoyed the process. Thank you for your hope filled message here and on Sunday morning.
Thank you Jeff! Needed reminder of the community of hope. And particularly needed the reminder that if resisting adding to the aggression is all I can manage today maybe that's adequate.
Such a needed reminder. And thank you so much for the link to "Guernica" which is also wonderfully titled!
I'm still grieving my Sammy who rescued me 11 years ago. He set the bar too high, I'm afraid, for another dog. He's been gone since March 5 and I'm still so sad. Sending you love and hugs in your memories of Fozz
I disagree. I think that they are just as trapped by their privilege as others are by their lack of privilege. They are products of the stories that they were told and the stories that they tell themselves. They have to suffer profound disconnection, because they lack the skills to connect well. I like Acts 26:18 which says 'open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God' because it reminds me that they can't see what they can't see. Our leaders are a reflection of us. That is the good thing and the crappy thing about democracy. I am focusing on what I can control and what I can't. When I am feeling despair, my mantra is 'circle of control, circle of control, circle of control. Thank you for being such a blessing to me.
Perhaps you are more gracious than I am!
I do agree with most of what you're saying. but sometimes—and, to be clear, I am not saying that this is the case with your use of the phrase—I hear, "Everyone is doing the best they can," as a sort of quick absolution. In some situations, it can even seem like a casual dismissal of someone else's legitimate claims of harm or grievance.
Just reflecting on my own choices and my own actions, there are absolutely times when I am not doing the best I can. In those moments, it's my responsibility to be self-aware, make amends for whatever hurt I've caused, and act on my knowledge that I can actually do better. So that's what I mean when I make the case that I don't actually think everyone is doing the best they can.
I really needed this today. Thank you.
Hope is a very tricky concept for me, especially right now when I'm hoping for some very immediate things personally and also generally hoping for a better future than the one I fear will come to pass here in the U.S. I have to remind myself over and over again that I don't need to FEEL hope as long as I'm ACTING like I feel hope— cultivating my garden, doing my voting research, going to medical appointments, cooking dinner, babysitting for a friend. Doing what's right in front of me without worrying about the outcome has been saving my life lately, but it can still be hard.
Your title caught my attention because I've always hated that expression. Especially now, since my daughter has been dealing with cancer and horrible side effects for the last two years. The FB post comment, Everything will be Ok, makes me rage. A dismissal of my grief, her suffering,and our collective pain.
I too am a gardener and have found it one of my only places of true solace. I understand about the hope one can find and plant in the garden. It's the only place where everything seems to find it's place. Life, death, grief, joy.
Anyway....i appreciate the new perspective you've given me on the saying, everything will be ok. Perhaps it doesn't have to be trite. Perhaps it can encompass all of it.
Tai, I am so glad you shared this comment, because I, too, have not really liked this saying. It has so often felt to me like a way to rush past what's hard and what's painful. I suppose, like so many other things, it doesn't have to be only one thing. From one mouth, it certainly can be that. But from another, it can take on an entirely different sense. I hope that's true, anyway.
Thank you for taking the time to add your perspective and wisdom.