Creating art that evokes tenderness, hope, whimsy, and exploration, to help us collectively honor our inner child, build connections, protest oppressive systems, and appreciate the preciousness of life.
It’s true; you are one person out of billions of people on Earth, a planet that’s one out of billions of planets in The Milky Way, a galaxy that’s one out of billions of other galaxies in this likely infinite universe. It’s scary to think about. Maybe this makes you feel empty. It can even lead you to silly conclusions like nothing matters.
We may be specks on Earth, but it can also be true that we are all great miracles. Think of every explosion, collision, and decision that has led up to your existence, here and now.
We are connected to everything. We were born with this connection and will always have it, although our lives are temporary. Things become less scary and more simple when you see it this way.
Everything and Nothing: How to live life as a speck on Earth
FIND DIVINITY IN EVERYTHING
To enjoy this great miracle and celebrate the impermanence of life, we must see the divinity in it all. Magic is found wherever we choose to find it. (Even in the mundane)!
So love everything. It’s a privilege to put the groceries away, do the dishes, and brush your teeth. Love it all! Love the rain, the flowers, the trees, the dirt, the clouds, and the worms that will one day eat your body. Love a crappy cup of coffee. Love each and every person you see walking past you. In doing so, we can make our lives not just bearable, but beautiful.
Healing your inner child
Do you remember your inner child? What were they like? What did they like? Can you remember their wonder? Their silliness? Their laughter? What made them excited? What made them scared?
As children, we are innocent, open-hearted, and sensitive, but as we grow up, many of us are taught that being strong means denying our pain. We detach from our sensitivity, and we’re rewarded in our culture for it. But the pain our inner child experienced never left us. Those wounds have stayed with us as we grew into adults, impacting how we interact with the world.
As adults, we have the freedom to unlearn harmful patterns and become the person we want to be. When we recognize a trigger in our body, we can realize it's the reaction of our inner child and give them what they need at that moment.
Give yourself the love you needed as a child. Let your inner child know they are safe, loved, and seen. Create a space for them to let their most silly, joyful, sensitive, gentle, free, and authentic self shine unapologetically. You are them, and they are you.
Let your journey through life be about regaining your innocence again and again.
Having compassion for your inner child opens up possibilities for you to see the inner child in others and have compassion for their wounds, too.
The child in me sees the child in you.
To cultivate a more loving world, we must first ask what barriers keep us from love and how we can overcome them.
Living in a society ruled by capitalism, we are constantly reminded that profits are prioritized over our well-being. No matter how much we work, consume, or compete to be the “best,” we will never be able to reach the false dream of fulfillment that had been promised to us. Most of us are always tired and dissociated, and we are left with less hope and more existential dread every day.
With the help of tragic optimism, we can work together to build a better world with the understanding that even in the harshest realities, meaning can still be found.
Imagination as resistance. Joy as resistance. Love as resistance.
To combat oppressive systems, embracing our sensitivity is the best act of love for ourselves, one another, and the universe. Our grief and rage are sources of power, and our hope is our best weapon. By supporting each other’s vulnerability, fragility, and creativity, we can build a strong community that will fulfill us more than capital ever could.
Loving each other despite the hate we’ve been taught is more important than ever. Love a little harder today. It might travel farther than you ever expected it to.
Many of us yearn for a life we don’t feel like we have to escape from. Together, we can build that!