by Anna Ervin
“Don’t let me show evil, though it may be all I take. Show me love.”
These song lyrics were released by Big Wild and Hundred Waters over three years ago, but as the events of yesterday unfolded at Capitol Hill, I could not get them out of my head. The range of emotions I felt while watching news clips spanned from anger, to sadness, to sympathy.
It is hard for me to see two sides, or two parties, though I do recognize that these concepts exist. What I see when I look at our country is a collective group of human beings with individual thoughts, feelings, and ideas about what could make this world a better place. At the end of the day, I think that is what most of us are fighting for. So how did things turn sour?
I have talked a little bit about energy work in previous writings, and I truly believe that what you give energy to, you give life to. I understand how easy it is to get caught up in negativity, especially with everything going on in the world right now. Believe me, I found myself yelling at news reporters and politicians through my computer screen on more than one occasion yesterday. At a certain point, I had to stop and ask myself, “Are my reactions to these emotions serving anyone’s best interest right now?”
I am not saying that you should suppress the way you feel, I’m actually inviting you to explore those feelings further. What does the anger, the sadness, the confusion tell you about yourself? Anger is the emotion that is hardest for me to cope with. I hate being mad. However, I have learned that when I do feel upset about something, it often has more to do with me being angry with myself. If I send the situation love, in the process, I might manage to find forgiveness.
Simply bearing witness to your emotions without reacting to them right away can be a powerful tool in coping with mood swings, managing productivity, and even healing traumas. Now just imagine transforming those emotions into something that resonates with love. If you are angry at someone, send a prayer or positive thought. When you feel sad, channel those feelings into creativity or activism. If politics are confusing you, empower yourself by asking more questions.
I am challenging you today to “show me love.” I don’t mean me specifically, but show yourself, your friends, family, or strangers you encounter, that you are actively choosing to infuse more love into the world.
Mahatma Ghandi said, “if we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change…” In the end, it all circles back to learning to love yourself and giving yourself space to grow or heal. It is not always going to be easy, but the best things in life rarely ever are. When you slip up (which you will, because you are human), just find your way back to your original intention.
Now go be the change, or the love, that you wish to see.