When you think about the pandemic, how do you “hold it”? That is, what is the context you use to think and act? Do you see it as transitional—as something to get through? Or do you see it as transformational—as something that is to be worked with and used for your personal and our collective betterment?

There is a quality that exists in the natural world that many of us seek. It is the way things happen, a divine order, which has a sense of “this is the way it should be”. We can call this quality “is ness”; as in “it just is”. Everything in nature, unlike what is created by humans, occurs without personal agenda. By being in this larger field, we reset our own basic truths; we realign beyond agenda and ego to a deeper place.

Southern New Hampshire boasts many natural treasures but one of the finest is Mount Monadnock. Between 1810 and 1820, local farmers, believing that wolves were living there, twice set fire to the mountain. And now today, we live in uncertain times with an acceleration of anger that is faster than any I have ever witnessed. The response must be to turn one’s back on rage, walk away, and creatively quiet the voices of fear to promote our better natures.

I have been thinking about weeding, and what it has taught me. It is this. If I am ambivalent on where to act, what I don’t want is what will frequently win out. Weeding the unnecessary, the unneeded or uninspiring from my life is one of the best ways for me to get what I do want. So much attention is spent these days in telling people to envision their goals. Without doubt that is critical. But the art of removal is also important.

It has been a long winter in New Hampshire. The weather has been tough, the days cold, and even now, in mid-April, the mornings are 30 degrees. This makes for a weariness of spirit that is palpable on many people's faces. Last December we also had an ice storm, which left my town without power for ten days. During the darkest time of the year, that's ten days with no heat, electricity, hot water or light. It was a difficult struggle.

Consider for a moment all the struggles you have in your life that revolve around problematic relationships. How many of these struggles are long term and rarely seem to break through. You can fight the issues, consistently be disappointed, and find yourself forever frustrated. But if it is in their nature, that is, if what you want changed is not who the other person actually is, you are more likely to find yourself in a pattern of conflict retread than anything else.

I was in Maryland last weekend talking about resiliency. Three times during the course of the afternoon, on a windless day when nothing was moving but a slight breeze and the conversation, a HUGE tree came crashing down in the nearby woods. Trees were literally coming down around us. In a lifetime of small miracles, this was a day to remember. Imagine. When was the last time you heard a tree fall? Now think about it happening three times within a few hours!