I’ve been traveling around the sun on this big ball called earth since May 19th, 1964. That’s 56 revolutions around the sun being held in place by gravity. I’ve been traveling around the sun through time and space without stopping, marking away time. And if I choose to mark away time, I want to do so and have it mean something. It starts by examining myself and observe what I do, watch, buy, say or not say, and discern if my actions either heal or tear down. This type of revolution is an upheaval in the status quo. It is an examining of what works and what doesn’t. This type of revolution requires that I connect with the Divine to gather the strength and overturn or reinforce belief systems put in place by privilege, struggles and life experiences. Lasting change has to start with a personal upheaval first and is the only way to end personal and global suffering.

Bring about your own revolution. First, remind yourself everyday that you are needed here. You need not be stagnant in your time and space. It is your job to swim through the murky seaweed and debris in constant search for how you want to live your life and how it may affect the lives of others. In a revolution, you have a job to do, a lesson to learn, and a purpose to discover that you will share directly or indirectly with another. For a revolution, your purpose doesn’t involve material, it involves action. To support, to teach, to calculate, to heal, to guide, to sow, to assemble, to unite, to create, to share, to research, to communicate, to love, to do something – this is where you start. Your voice working in tandem with the Divine will miraculously find a way to help you figure out the rest.

It is fear that keeps institutions in place that promote systemic oppression. The people that support these institutions are too afraid to start their own personal revolution. They fear change. They fear love. They are afraid of what might be if they lose their privilege. They fear having to share resources and care for people that they deem less than so they can maintain their thwarted view of being “better than”. They fear not having enough if they don’t have more than those they oppress. Revolutionaries for positive change must be braver than that. You may feel fear but don’t let that fear stop you from doing the right thing over and over again until we freakin’ get it right.

Fight for your piece of the planet where you may begin to plant and grow some self-love because that’s what fuels the courage to share that love. Courage in action is a group of protesters and police officers walking together holding similar signs demanding a change in our status quo. It was a personal choice on the part of a few people to stand next to each other and start a revolution in a way that may have a lasting effect. It was simple and powerful just like the gravity that keeps us planted here. Gravity is an invisible force that pulls objects toward each other and the closer the objects are the stronger the gravitational pull. Let gravity do its thing and pull us together for equality and peace. Take action. Open your mouth and call people on their shit. At minimum, vote. Make your revolutions count not by marking away time, but making the most of each moment and the decisions you make as you track around the sun.

Questions/activities to ponder or good journal prompts!

1. Think of one change you can make to bring about change in your life. How might your personal change affect the lives of others?
2. Do you recognize the privilege you’ve experienced in your lifetime? What is it and how has it affected your life and the lives of others?
3. What about the current strife our world is experiencing due to oppression scares you and why?
4. Why are we so uncomfortable with difference?
5. A revolution starts with empathy and compassion for self and others. How will you improve upon these virtues in your own life and in the world?