What on Earth Are We Voting For?

Years ago I adopted the practice and belief that paying attention to politics and current world events was somehow harmful. That I needed to buffer myself so I didn't let the negativity in the world affect me. After all, I had worked so hard on building up my own bubble of resistance to the world, I didn't want to allow anything in to destroy it. So I stopped listening to the news. I stopped reading the paper. I would change the subject if politics came up amongst friends and colleagues. I didn't want to hear about climate change, or legislation that harmed others. I definitely didn’t want to know about anything violent happening in our country or our world. I further told myself it was o.k. to adopt these behaviors, because I was a spiritual teacher. I needed to appear “neutral” so that I didn’t isolate people I was working with or having readings with.

One day shortly after Trump became president, I woke up to all of the neglect and denial I had brainwashed myself with. The bubble burst and it was excruciating. I suddenly saw things I had never seen before. I became aware of how my position contributed to further damage in our world. I realized how my unwillingness to participate in society as an informed person was heavily rooted in the privilege of being a white woman, fairly unaffected by the slings and arrows of devastating legislation and decision making of our leaders, and the rampant systemic oppression alive and well in this country. I immediately realized how I had somehow managed to buffer myself so that I did not need to feel any discomfort. I thought that because I was so open minded, and so accepting, and so loving of everyone, that was enough. In that buffering, I continued to betray those in this country who could not speak for themselves. I betrayed my community, my neighbors, my family, and myself.

So I immediately divorced myself from so-called “spiritual messages” advising me to stay in my comfy bubble, and not let the negativity of the world in. I discovered that I could still maintain my inward spiritual practices AND make participating in the world an equal part of my own spirituality. I began reading, studying, participating, volunteering, advocating…and do you know what I discovered? Those actions and behaviors were the missing link to a sense of wholeness like I had never known. I was suddenly alert, aware, and conscious! For the first time in my life, at age 42. I finally felt like I got this missing link - that facing the world, looking at what was broken, seeing what I had not wanted to see - was exactly what was needed. Taking actions with no expectation for anything in return, was liberating. My heart exploded, and an inner will surfaced like never before.

It suddenly occurred to me we were hitting a fast track with our awakening as a humanity, it had been going on for decades, and in my own pretentious fashion, I thought I knew what I was doing. To continue to guard and protect myself from the realities in our society was doing nothing but setting up a repetitive pattern of betrayal. I couldn’t do that anymore. So I started talking about it with other seekers and spiritual thinkers. Many were feeling the same way. It was clunky and awkward in the beginning, but eventually getting involved, and extending my support as a volunteer and activist moved this energy with purpose.

I assert that we cannot claim to be spiritual without also participating in a conscious way in our world. Our sense of oneness doesn’t get to reside in our minds and hearts without participating in taking action to bring real unity. We must become spiritual activists. Using our spiritual practices to ground and heal, while continuing to reach out in active participation in the world. We are not all one, we are not all equal, no matter how much we want to think that way. There is great disparity, inequality and injustice in our country and communities. Our intentions and mantras can only accomplish so much. Tending to this world and the oppression and wounding on the psyche of humanity takes something more. This is the rising of the Divine Feminine. It takes a willingness to be uncomfortable. To admit this world is deeply flawed. To extend ourselves as healers in ways that move us out of our comfort zones.

On this day, the voting day of the primaries, I am no longer in denial, waiting for someone to tell me who to vote for. I know who the candidates are. I know what they stand for. And I continue to volunteer in my community, to learn and study about injustice and oppression in our society. I continue to allow the discomfort, to drive the anger and rage I feel towards something good and purposeful, to elevate the more negative emotions to supporting my community and society as a whole. And I still do my daily meditations, listen to my spiritual podcasts, and use tarot and astrology to understand deeper spiritual truths, support my clients, and do plenty of self care. It can all exist together. Our spiritual practices do not need to be either/or.

The world, the universe CAN be in us…and we a part of it…forever as one…I know this potential exists. We, dear friends, are a long way away from that. The promise of this truth doesn’t come from secluding and isolating ourselves as individuals from the realities and truths that exist in our world right now.