When I woke up this morning I felt disturbed. Sung left for school and I took Lotus on a morning walk. The air quality is bad today. Cannot see the nearby hills. The sun is an angry red disc swollen four times its normal size. My throat got scratchy from breathing smoke as my mind marinated in feelings of doom and gloom.
I came home and turned on the TV. When I caught up on world news…I was shocked. What is happening?! I know pain and suffering is perpetual, but there’s an extraordinary amount of turbulence right now. It’s distressing to witness these historic events.
I watched video footages of hundreds of Afghan people swarming the airport runway in Kabul, desperately trying to squeeze on one of the last planes out of the country. Imagine sprinting with only the clothes on your back, trying to escape your country, not even knowing where your destination is.
Even more disturbing, I saw a video of someone who fell hundreds of feet to their death as an airplane took off. They were hanging on to the outside of the airplane. What has to be going through your mind to think your best option is to cling to the outside of the airplane? It’s horrible.
And from what I saw, those were all men at the airport. My heart is broken for the vulnerable women and girls who are hiding from the turmoil. I’m not anti-Islam in the slightest, but it’s an unfortunate fact that extremist regimes of any religion are especially repressive for women.
When immigration inevitably becomes a political debate topic, let’s remember the reality of refugees and take the side of humanity. No one wants to uproot themselves from their homeland unless they are forced to. People in this situation should be accepted without any further stress.
Wealthy nations need to welcome refugees. The USA military spent how many trillions of tax dollars fighting a war over the past two decades? So why are there homeless veterans? And why are we so stingy with accepting immigrants? Surely we have plenty of money to help the victims of the war. I wish our abundance would go to support USA citizens including anyone who desires to become a USA citizen.
Regardless of your political perspective, we can all agree that this chaotic crisis in Afghanistan is an inhumane disaster.
Now on the other side of the globe the aftermath of a devastating natural disaster is unfolding. As I write this, the 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Haiti has killed 1,300 people and injured thousands more people. The death toll is rising as the rubble is still being excavated. Hospitals are totally overwhelmed.
My best friend Kymiah is very worried because her Mom’s relatives live near the epicenter of the earthquake. They have been unable to communicate with their family and have no idea if they are safe or not. I am praying that her family is okay and that they’ll be in contact soon.
As I sit on my couch right now, it certainly puts my blessings into perspective. It was a lucky accident to be born on this particular piece of land instead of being born somewhere else in the world. Here, I am insulated from wars and political instability. We may have natural disasters in California, but living in a rich country means the government spares no cost to fight the wildfires.
If you think about it, the USA has a bigger budget to protect empty buildings than Haiti has to rescue humans trapped beneath destroyed buildings.
There are so many unprecedented events happening in the world today, and as they stack up it highlights steep inequality. Why do some people get to have everything and other people lack everything? Just think about how people in other countries are desperate to get a Covid vaccine, meanwhile here in the USA privileged people are throwing temper tantrums over wearing masks. Ugh. It makes me feel numb to my core.
Today, let’s all say a prayer for our world. 🙏
Update 8/18: Kymiah was finally able to get in contact with her relatives, and thankfully they are safe after the earthquake.
Hi Lizi, I just followed your blog and wanted to tell you that everything will be okay. I decided to take a news break for today because it is so depressing. Tend to your garden and your family today and all will be better.
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Hello, thank you. I appreciate you. I am going to take a little break from the news as well. Thank you for the reminder!
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AMEN Sister🙏
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🙂
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it is heartbreaking, but there is still a lot of good in the world and I’m ever hopeful
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thank you🙂 Today I am feeling more hope!
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Me too, liz
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It’s heartbreaking… takes my breath away how horrible it all is… 🙏🙏🙏🙏
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Agreed 💔😢
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Yeah, I’ve avoided the news lately because there’s just too much to take in. Even my own country (Malaysia) alone is going through some very weird times. Add on what’s going on in Afghanistan and South Africa and it’s just a constant barrage of ‘wtf are we doing to ourselves’. Sad times.
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It truly is a wtf-inducing moment globally. I’m trying to find a balance between staying aware of current events but not getting too discouraged, because our attention should focus on the small sphere of what we CAN control. 🙂
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I agree with what you and everyone else have said here. What’s happening in today’s world is indeed frightening and, as you say, “unprecedented.” And still, there is so much beauty waiting to be discovered in each and every one of us. And, once we have become stabilized in that inner love, peace, and beauty, we can radiate it outward. That’s all I can do at my stage of the game in response to the chaos, insanity, and stupidity of the saddening events going on.
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Thank you David, for your kind and thoughtful comment. Sometimes I feel like the word “unprecedented” is overused, but then again there really doesn’t seem to be a better word to describe the way things are going. I appreciate your reminder that we need to stabilize ourselves with inner peace and love, since we cannot control the external chaos.🙏
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Being born where was and having been a California the last 50 years, I know what you’re saying. Believing balance is where we are always heading, my hope is that we have swung so far in the direction of fear and hate and all we associate with these emotions, that we will swing farther in the other direction than we have in a while. As far as unprecedented, never known or done before, the world has never looked like it does today. Each era and generation can make the same claim about entirely different events.Hang in there. I have felt what you’re feeling and still do at times. I try to remember that I’ve awakened breathing in my own bed as I start each day.
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I appreciate your perspective, and the idea that our collective consciousness is like a pendulum so when things swing far in the direction of fear and hate they will have to eventually swing back to balance. Thank you for the reminder to begin my days with some peaceful breathing.🙂
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Also, thanks for following. Whenever anyone follows me, I’m humbled.
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Likewise!
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I was almost in tears yesterday just watching those helpless people trying to get on crowded airplanes. It is awful. And a young girl in mask on the news was so worried that Taliban is going to do all they can to make her life miserable. What a world we are living in if good cannot fight with evil?
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Truthfully, it’s so distressing . All I can hope is that everyone who helped the USA military will get evacuated and relocated. For the rest of the population and especially the women and girls. I can’t imagine the trauma they are facing as they lose many freedoms. 😢
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Me too. Hope so too. Can’t imagine those poor women submitting to Taliban’s brutal rules. That’s just awful.
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💔🙏
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What a brilliant blog. So truthful.
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Thank you very much. 🙂🌹
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I like what you say about “turbulence”, it certainly feels like we’re going through uncertain times! I read that we are definitely at the start of the 6th extinction of species and my heart breaks for my children and my grandchildren. What have we done? If only our leaders would wake up to the facts! Isn’t it time they learnt that we are the cause of so many of the earth’s problems? If I believed in a god I would be praying but it is we humans who need to see the problems and it is we humans who need to fix them!
I’m sorry if this is a very negative comment! I sometimes feel like one of those men walking around our towns and cities carrying a billboard declaring “the End is Nigh”! 🙋♂️
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Ashley I don’t think it’s a negative comment — it’s the unfortunate reality of what’s happening! We’re living in unsustainable times. Homo sapiens can’t keep living on this planet the way we do. To me the saddest thing is that the decisions of a handful of powerful humans threaten the existence of millions/billions other humans. For example, how climate change and rising sea levels affects countries that aren’t even producing carbon emissions… all that to say, I’ll join you with a virtual “the end is nigh!” billboard 🙃
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You’re too young to be carrying a doom and gloom message! 🤗 However, I’d appreciate your company. Perhaps, working together we will find a more positive way forward. 💐💐🙋♂️
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I’m with you ♡♡♡ we have to balance realism with positivity within our own lives! 🌹
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