History is made every day. I woke up and learned that Russia had officially invaded Ukraine. I froze. Images on Television unable to be unseen.
A tank runs over a car with a civilian. Purposely. And then in reverse, plows over the vehicle again. Targeted brutality outside of the purview of the battlefield.
An interview on the morning of the 26th with a woman holding a child while hidden away in a bomb shelter, pleading for the West to do something. Trembling, her husband is out fighting…no idea if she will ever see him again. Future terrifyingly uncertain.
Her words invade my thoughts. A poignant moment in my mind. I listen to her as she eloquently puts into words what we are all wondering…. would this stop with Ukraine? What was this insanity and what could we do to stop it?
This is history – in the making. What part do we have to play in it all? Sitting here, halfway across the world. How do we process and make sense of it?
It’s different this time. Right? As technology increases, social media brings stories within seconds to those halfway across the world. We are a global economy.
There is no going back. 200 years ago, Ukraine would be some distant place held only by the imagination. Now, it’s proximity in this new global climate, makes it terrifyingly close to home, despite the geographical distance.
Seeing it so close. We really can’t look the other way. It can make us desperate to gain a perspective that stops us from sliding backwards. Seeking solid ground and a safe place for our thoughts to reflect and develop some sort of understanding.
This entry isn’t about a happy ending. For you the reader, I make no promise of a resolution. Life is not a stagnant one-time event. It won’t end until the death of the last man standing.
Life is ever evolving. Events continuously transpiring as mankind is called to the all-important task of meaning making.
Oddly, perhaps what we must acknowledge to each other is that we have guilt for having become complacent. History repeats itself when the lesson is forgotten. Peace isn’t there for us to take for granted. It is there if we want it, but to show we want it, we must fight for it.
The world moves much faster than it used to. World History of long ago, spoke of empires lasting thousands of years. Yes, one would conquer another and so on. But it seems to me that leading up to an empire being overthrown, there were years of complacency which made the overthrowing all that much easier.
Have we become complacent? Is there guilt behind the emotions I have felt over the last few days as I watch events transpire halfway around the world?
I confess that I am guilty of complacency. Frequent complacency. It is one thing to write about faith, hope, mindset, and perception. It is quite another, to hold onto hope, and fight for hope, with a tenacity of spirit while fearful of what comes next. Inconvenienced by a war that is now, much closer to home and heart.
It is time to remember that the battles of war are never very far away. They have been and always will be, if not in plain sight, then just over the horizon.
I for one, have been moved by the courage demonstrated by Ukraine. It is humbling to watch people fight for what is there’s and defend with such courage. Do I have that kind of courage? Do you?
I have been praying the last few days for a peaceful resolution between Russia and Ukraine. I can only hope that my feeble prayers make their way to where they are needed.
We must not turn away from what is happening. Don’t let the distance from our shores, make it less meaningful. It is challenging to face events that are unresolved. And it can be difficult to make peace when our objectivity is under threat. We can’t really be objective when the history of the world plays out on our watch.
It means we are called to make sense and meaning of what we witness. History is not made by the event itself but by the meaning we attribute to it.
It’s too soon to reflect on what is not yet done. Russia and Ukraine are not done and right now we can only hope and pray that the best of mankind shows itself in the next few days.
Yes, you can be like me, and find a non-profit to donate to that is working with the refugees and providing supplies…but this is small change. It is little more than pennies in my opinion.
It is my complacency that I am brought back to now. I need to not take for granted what others cannot. This is not to say that you and I are called to live in guilt. We aren’t supposed to live less, for this serves no one.
But I am reminded to live life on purpose and with a mission. To be active in my civic duty, my work, my volunteering, my community, my family, and myself.
We are reminded of what is NOT to be taken for granted. Vote because others cannot. Volunteer and give to the community that we call home. Work out of gratitude for the opportunity to apply our gifts and strengths to the world.
Don’t take freedom for granted. We are afforded the right to think for ourselves. To entertain more than one idea and to practice faith and belief openly. We have freedom of identity and have the right to express this identity. These are the rights within certain nations such as our own. They are not global.
The United States is a superpower. We are lucky in this. To live in a Nation that is so economically and militarily powerful, and that also affords us the human rights that so many others live without.
But our worst enemy is ourselves. It is our complacency. We must not take for granted what others fought so bravely for us to have. I truly believe that complacency is what causes our demise.
Ukraine and Russia are halfway across the world. But in truth, they are right next door. Their citizens are Russians and Ukrainians, but in truth, they are brothers and sisters of all mankind. They are foreign economies. But in truth, we are a global economy, and one nation immediately affects another.
We are a tiny planet traveling through the vastness of the cosmos. And we only have each other and this one planet. You and I are citizens of this world. We cannot pretend to be unaffected by what plays out on our watch.
I have a lot of work to do on myself. Learning to practice gratitude for what is there for me to have. Remembering that the freedoms I enjoy, and the relative harmony of my daily living was fought for me by the courage of those that came before.
What must I do today to make sure this freedom is kept safe for those that come next? How can I ensure that I live as God or the Divine intended?
I pray I become less complacent. Peace is there to have as long as it is not taken for granted. Remembering and honoring the bravery of the battle, is what ensures that peace remains.
That’s very good point
That’s an awesome point