“All shall be well, and all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well.” –Julian of Norwich

In the bigger spiritual picture, “all shall be well” and we are indeed, okay.  The Divine, however we define It, Her or Him, is SO much bigger than us, our community, our nation or our earth.  The Divine is unknowable to us…., knowing that, yes, we are okay.

So, why don’t we feel okay?  Many of us have feelings of pain, distress, heartache, sadness, fear and shock about recent political events in the nation.  There’s grief and a sense of loss that makes us feel wounded and anguished, for our nation and for ourselves.  Both during and as a result of the election, it has become painfully obvious that many of us have not felt heard or acknowledged.  So, how do we move on in this very challenging climate?

What now?

• Deepen Your Spiritual Practice– Take time to find the core of your spiritual practice.  It could be meditation, ritual, praying, chanting, sitting in circle, celebrating in community. Find and attend to something that connects you to the Divine, to your sacred center.
• Be In Nature–  The Japanese call it forest bathing.  Connect with the natural world, a tree, a park, go to the mountains, watch a rainstorm, be with the larger, deeper force of nature, the spirit of our holy Mother Earth.
  • “You should sit in nature 20 minutes a day, unless you are too busy, then you should sit for an hour”– Old Zen Saying
• Connect to Kindness– Offer or exchange a smile, offer a small act of kindness, ask or give a hug, call a friend.  This is our opportunity to be of service to a world in need of kindness and compassion.
• Feel Your Emotions–  Be aware of what you are feeling, allow those feelings, honor them, exactly as they show up.  In the same way, allow others to be where they are with their feelings, even if you don’t agree with them. Everyone processes in a different way.
• Practice Good Self Care– It is time to take very good care of yourself.  Eat well, get plenty of rest, care for your physical and emotional needs. When we have filled ourselves, when we are compassionate and caring of ourselves, we can respond more compassionately to others.
• Take a News or  Social Media Retreat–  Turn off the news, turn off the radio, take a vacation from Facebook.  Allow time for silence.  Give time to others face to face, instead of digitally.  Allow yourself rest from the outside media influences, allow yourself time to heal.
• Find Something To Do Right Now–  For some, it will be to write letters, sign petitions, participate in protests.  For others, sitting still, helps us with our creative juices and finding direction for the “what now”.

Taking a purposeful pause to deepen our practice, take care of ourselves and to be kind allows us to get grounded for the hard work ahead.

Sidni Lamb is the founder, visionary and motor behind Mindful New Mexico and the New Mexico Leaders in Mindfulness Conferences.

Sidni’s work and passion focuses on connecting people to their communities and building bridges for collaborative relationships across all sectors and disciplines through mindfulness-based capacity building training, curating conversations for meaningful connections and teaching peace studies courses.

Genevieve Mitchell is a Partner with Goddess Ink Publishing.  She is a Priestess, a Network Weaver, a photographer, a socially responsible  investor, a mother, a grandmother and a devotee of God/Goddess/Divine/Spirit. You can contact her at genevieve@goddess-ink.com.

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Photo Credit: “New Mexico Sky” Genevieve Mitchell