Week 23—in which we laugh, we cry, we pray, and we take responsibility

Beautiful Ones,

What a week this has been! Are you laughing? Or crying? Or both? Maybe at the same time! Like you, I’m alternating between laughing and crying. How can we watch the total insanity of schoolyard bullies calling each other names, flailing as they try to land punches, and not laugh.

Whoever came up with TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out) should get an award. The memes! My fave is the meme of the (fake) new Pantone color of the year—taco—a pale pukey orange. A color no one would allow in their home.

I laugh, although this isn’t real laughter.

This is horror laughter. This is “this can’t be happening” laughter. The billionaire bullies may be slinging mud at each other, but it is we, in this country and in the whole world, who are covered with dirt.

We’ve been talking about, and hoping for, the demise of patriarchy for a long time. But I don’t think we realized that it would look like this. That it would be so cruel, so naked. Nothing is hidden anymore. There is no veneer of leadership or statesmanship.

The veil hasn’t been lifted; it’s been yanked off and tossed in the fire.

We can no longer pretend that we don’t see the cruelty, the selfishness, the petty desire to harm anybody who dares to not kiss the ring. And, as we saw this week, even those who were sure they were safe because they bowed and scraped and praised the emperor, were themselves headed for the chipper.

What a world.

And so I ask myself, what can I do?
This is the question right now.

A question we are all asking and answering in our own unique ways. I ask myself what is mine to do? What can I do to heal the wounded, stand up to tyranny, refuse to obey? I am just one person. And the destruction is so great.

When I asked this question in deep soul writing, one word surfaced: Responsibility.

Responsibility? Sheesh, that’s a hard word. A heavy word. I would have liked a different response, but responsibility wouldn’t back down. And so I asked what I could do to take responsibility for our world right now.

The answer was succinct: open my eyes and see what wants to be seen. It hurts to look, but if I look away, if I refuse to witness the suffering my country is inflicting on itself and on the world, then I won’t be able to take responsibility for anything.

I won’t find my voice. I won’t be able to discover what is mine to do. And so, whatever it was that was mine to do won’t get done. And the world will continue to bleed. And toxic patriarchy will continue to grow and fester.

When Kahu Lāhela, Cathy Stevens Pratt, and I crafted a version of Hana I Ka Pono, the Hawaiian prayer of release and forgiveness, for Her Council of Love global prayer practice, responsibility stepped into the heart of the prayer.

Here’s the opening statement in Hana I Ka Pono:

“Invoking the power and strength of Lady Freedom, I, __________, and all who pray with me, offer ourselves to Hana I Ka Pono, to cultivate goodness, healing, and freedom for all life here on Mother Earth. We take responsibility and ask for forgiveness for all past, present, and future pain caused by personal and collective thoughts, words, actions and inactions.”    

Each time I say this prayer, I feel the weight of my own thoughts, words, actions, and inactions that have harmed me and the people around me. I know I need to take responsibility for those.

But there’s more in this prayer.

I am also taking responsibility for collective thoughts, words, actions, and inactions. That’s big. And it would be so easy to say: wait a minute, I didn’t do all those terrible things. I didn’t drop bombs. Or assassinate anyone. Or throw people in prison. Or enslave anyone. Or starve anyone.

But, if I’m willing to see what wants to be seen, if I ask to take responsibility, then I have to acknowledge that my country has done unspeakable harm and justified it, even codified it in law.

When I read this opening statement, I always find myself taking a very deep breath.

And then, in the next paragraph, we name what humans have done to one another. My country. Your country. But in the prayer, we ask to CUT these cords. Therein lies the freedom. Now there’s something we can do to take responsibility for ending patriarchy.

We ask to cut all negative cords of domination, control, injustice, oppression, abuse, tyranny, greed, enslavement, and suffering.

It’s a hard but also healing thing to name these horrors of history.

Finally, having stated that we will take responsibility and cutting the long chains of evil and abuse, we get to see our world restored to wholeness. To the way we once lived, and could live again, in harmony and in joy. I call that way of living, Her Garden of Reverence. We say:

We ask that these cords be cut, severed, cleansed, purified, and transmuted to the pathway of light. 

We ask that all be renewed and restored in Pono, in humility, in empathy, and in grace to honor, respect, and revere all life here on Mother Earth.

The prayer ends in Hawaiian:

Amama Ua Noa … it is given, it is free, amene”

It's a beautiful powerful prayer.

Would you like to pray Her Council of Love with me Monday June 9 at 4pm eastern?

The prayer is only ten minutes long.

I expanded my Zoom meeting size when Deep Soul Writing with Friends grew over 100. So for the month of June, I can invite my subscribers to come to Her Council of Love.

If you haven’t seen the page on my site about Her Council of Love, start here.

Her Council of Love 

Then, if you’d like to join us, here’s the Zoom information for Monday. 4p eastern, That's 3p central, 2p mountain, 1p pacific, 10a Hawaii. It’s late in Europe. 9p UK,10p Europe, and 8a Tuesday in New Zealand.

Meeting ID: 890 2202 7696
Passcode: Pray

I also created a Facebook page where we are talking about this powerful prayer. And wondering just what Lady Freedom is up to!

Her Council of Love Facebook group

to laughing, crying, praying and taking responsibility to heal the wasteland,

Janet
PS: Deep Soul Writing with Friends opened last Tuesday. You can still register.

In addition to our learning gatherings on Tuesdays (with watch parties on Thursdays so friends in all time zones can gather), Cathy and I are hosting 3 Friends cafes where we just chat about our soul writing experiences.

Deep Soul Writing with Friends

website: janetconner.com

facebook: janet conner prayer artist

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