Here we are in the chaos and the stillness.

…falling in and out,

and in

and out,

and back in love together.

Choosing each other in this moment.

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My father was sick for many years. My early twenties were spent worrying that he would die. At house parties, graduation ceremonies, and taking my first hopeful steps into a career, the person who built my understanding of the world was deteriorating. When his life came to an end in 2021, I had no idea who I was or how to see my life without him in it. Gazing down at my camera roll, tears streaming, I regretted not taking more pictures of him. In a state of grief, I turned to the internet to find connection. A man named Larry immediately reached out.

Forward & Meditation by Lora McCarville

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Albert Einstein famously described the illusion of separateness:

“A human being…experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

I believe the antidote to this condition is discovered when we recognize our similarities, our common humanity and connectedness. When we celebrate what we share as human beings, we open the door to empathy and compassion.

We realize that we are more alike than we are different.