As the World Burns
I made it a personal vow to keep away from the news for the last two months. I have been very open on social media about my mental health journey, and after having my first anxiety attack traveling 70 mph on the thruway in late October, I knew I needed to take space from the trauma on the news channels, and the devastating blows across the world (and in our own country).
That changed yesterday morning.
As it spread across social media as quickly as it was spreading in Los Angeles, I caught wind of the fires in California and was brought to my knees in instant mourning. The devastation, the loss, the fear that people were feeling in the same moments that I was feeling safety, security, gratitude for my life – it really is too much. I realized instantly that my personal shut-off from the rest of humanity is coming to a close, as I couldn’t imagine someone turning their back or simply closing their eyes from something as catastrophic as these fires if it were happening to me.
We cannot turn our backs on the rest of mankind – and louder in the back, for those of you out of earshot – we cannot turn on each other in the face of all that is coming.
The simple truth is this: at some point in our lives, we will need others to be there for us. We might have privilege, wealth, a roof over our heads and family by our sides. But one day we will all experience the need to be picked up by mere strangers and friends alike, and I know I would want someone to donate to my cause and my grief and my tragedy as if it were there own.
Life got harder when I became a mother, but not because of Roux. Taking care and nurturing him is the easiest part. It’s that my heart aches, breaks and mourns for every child everywhere. Of mothers who are trying to protect their babies, mothers who are trying to explain loss, war, and other incomprehensible things to their children. Becoming a mother connected me intrinsically to every mother and child in this world, and now I feel acutely for what happens to others as much as what happens to me. It’s been exhausting and my emotional health has suffered, but I would never want to feel anything less than profound empathy for my fellow man.
From where we sit in little Medina, NY, the fires are a sound bite on the nightly news for most, and then life goes on. But when we stop thinking of geography as grounds for separation and realize this entire planet is our home, we must look out and embrace each other as allies. Whether it is a fire on a side street in Medina or California forest fires ravaging tens of thousands of acres, let’s all hug each other tightly and reach out to our neighbors no matter who they are. We’re all in this world together.
To donate to this unthinkable tragedy – please consider the following places, and for the love of all that can be good in this world, don’t let anyone convince you this is anything but a planet that needs us all to STOP AND DO SOMETHING NOW to protect it for our children.
LAFD Wildfire Emergency Funding
Southern California Salvation Army
Other Places to Donate, Click Here
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