There is silence in the margins
🕺Dancing through a galaxy of extremes
Listen to a version of this column on the “Poetry in Eden” podcast, episode #32, available on Spotify or Apple podcasts. That version is also attached here for easy listening.
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🙏 Who We Are Is 🙏
Who we are is
A product of our society, our soul,
Our ego a.k.a a reflection of our shadow.
These traumas break us open
In ways we do not expect.
It is tough work to look at the self, but
The soul knows no bounds.
Let us choose authenticity and truth.
The mind holds the reality.
We cannot take fate into our own hands,
Though we can make choices.
The hero’s journey beckons us all.
Only some take the heed to action.
As a matter of fact, a matter unspoken,
If one is called on this journey,
It is an endless process of
Learning and re-learning.
Yes—somethings break us open.
That’s life.
Perfect is fiction.
🏃 Keeping Up With the Joneses 🏃
I boarded my flight back to the U.S. with a mind heavy with worry and anxiety. It was the longest I had ever been away from home, and I wasn’t sure what I would return to. But everything went smoothly. . .so smoothly, in fact, that it caught me off guard.
Every time I come back, I am struck by America’s numbness. People live in their own silos, guarding what is theirs, clinging to what they love. Status and luxury have become obsessions, while inequity is ignored with practiced ease. The instinct to speak out is dulled, the drive to resist is extinguished. The silence sends chills down my spine. I hear it echoing in the margins, where reality remains unspoken, unchallenged.
I understand why people seek comfort in this detachment. But comfort is a poor substitute for freedom. And if we choose complacency over courage, what becomes of us?
I wonder. Yes, I wonder, what is our shared fate? Are we destined to pretend?
🧨 Did Someone Say Blitzkrieg? 🧨
In his first month back in office, Mr. Trump has issued hundreds of executive orders—many of them blatantly unconstitutional. It’s hard to gauge the appropriate level of concern, but I fear the worst about his intentions. I hesitate to say it, but not all of his ideas are entirely foolish. Then again, neither were Hitler’s. Ambition does not excuse autocracy.
I love you, Ukraine: Trump and his VP, J.D. Vance, blindsided the beloved Zelensky in Washington, stripping Ukraine of vital American support. The Economist observes, “The two armies are fighting each other because they cannot stop, not because they are really hoping to achieve a decisive victory.” As I watch my Ukrainian friends, devastated and displaced, I grieve for their homeland.
Too much power for fools: Eric Adams, the Mayor of New York City, has been ousted over corruption charges. Yet, he may cling to power through a quid pro quo arrangement with Trump on immigration. . .yes, so long as he follows Trump’s demands.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion in schools: The Trump administration told schools not to use race as criteria for employing staff, awarding scholarships, or the support they provide to students.
Complicit corporations: Sure, TikTok was banned. But, it was Apple and Google who went ahead and removed the app from their app stores in compliance with Trump’s orders.
Brazilian Trump-admirers: Jair Bolsanaro, a former far-right president, has been charged with staging a coup. Trump has sued the judge presiding over Bolsanaro’s case.
🤔 Collective Amnesia 🤔
Haven’t we seen this behavior before? Why are we so afraid to admit it? Is fear truly better than action? Subordinating justice to a president’s whims erodes the very foundation of the rule of law. And only a month in, the future already looks grim.
The world feels like it’s spinning backward, gripped by collective amnesia. As The Economist observed in February,
“(Trump) has a tendency to explain to friendly audiences, ‘I have the right to do whatever I want as president.’”
But he does not. And yet—who will stand against him?
“Will Mr. Trump, in his determination to reshape America’s government, usurp the authority of Congress and the courts? . . . Mr. Trump’s early actions look particularly worrisome because the executive branch moves much faster than the legislative and judicial branches can respond.”
✨ The Stars Are Not Aligned ✨
From Chani Nichols:
“From March 1st, we have a Venus Retrograde, lasting 40 days (love-in-trouble); on the Ides of March (15th), Mercury goes retrograde (communication snafus, misunderstandings, travel delays); at the same time, there is a lunar eclipse in Virgo: this is the same astrological configuration that occurred when Caesar went to the Senate (and, well, he didn’t leave the Senate alive, so watch out around the Ides). And then: a Solar Eclipse on the 29th, along with Neptune going into Aries on the 30th. The last time this Neptune/Aries transit happened (in 1860), civil war began in America. So, yeah. INTENSE MONTH.”
😘 A Prayer 😘
O God and Heavenly Father, grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.