by Elaine Blanchard
We are living in a new era when we can no longer rely on our elected officials to supply our needs. Institutions cannot stabilize the economy. Faith leaders cannot sustain our soulfulness. And police are not able to protect us all.
My daughter, Jennifer, an only child, and her husband, Dalton, had a baby boy, Abram, a few weeks ago. His birth has made me a grandmother and, although I have heard that love for a grandchild is unlike any other love in life, I was not prepared for the shift in my consciousness and the rearranging of my perspective on reality. A new era has begun.
Holding Abram in my arms and gently rocking him back and forth, I have deepened my resolve to do everything I can to make the world around him safer and more just. I consider his tiny face and wonder what his challenges will be and how he will deal with his strengths and privileges. He is just one child on a planet with six billion people. And this one small infant has the power to make me get off the couch and go out to break down walls and put up safety nets for his sake and for the sake of his entire generation.
We are living in a new era when we can no longer rely on our elected officials to supply our needs. Institutions cannot stabilize the economy. Faith leaders cannot sustain our soulfulness. And police are not able to protect us all.
We have evolved, and with our evolution, we have taken on increased responsibilities. We have learned how to instantly connect with human beings around the world and we have been well informed about the decrease in natural resources like clean water and clean air.
It is no secret that entire species in the plant and animal worlds have disappeared forever. We understand that we have the capacity to push a button and destroy the entire planet. None of us are innocent. Each one of us has a significant part to play in packing up and putting away the ideas and habits that have diminished our creativity and willingness to connect and care for nature, each other and the coming generations. Every person is our neighbor and every child belongs to all of us. The trash we toss on the beach in Destin has a negative impact on us and on somebody’s grandchild far away.
Abram has turned on the lights of my life, allowing me to see clearly that good things do not happen by accident. When my daughter was born, I was caught up in an unhealthy marriage, relying on alcohol for comfort and working long hours to escape my lack of self-worth. I failed Jennifer in many ways, just as I was failing myself. Abram has ushered in a chance for me to love consciously, aware of my choices, respectful of my personal power and free to do what I can to preserve the goodness of our shared community. He is still very small and yet he has made a big difference in my motivation to be an advocate for the earth and all its creatures.
