In The Eye of A Storm

Send Love-It Matters

I saw this image on Saturday morning after Hurricane Helene had carved its way up the coast. The blue color in the eye of the storm are birds.

I read how birds that find themselves in the paths of storms may instinctively fly toward the eye because it provides a temporary safe zone with relatively calm weather. They may have to continue to fly in that calm zone, because the wall of the eye becomes too strong to pass through. When the hurricane begins to dissipate the birds find their way out of the storm, sometimes far from their original habitats. A seabird may find itself far inland looking for shelter and food in unfamiliar places. A bird caught in mid migration would need to somehow find the elusive lay lines that draw them to their winter homes.

I found myself moved by the courage of all those small birds, continuing to fly for hours and hours, not knowing exactly where they were going, how long it would take to get there and what they would find on the other side of the storm. I imagined it would create a temporary community of very different kinds of birds, ones that would not usually fly or migrate in the same groups. But together in the eye of a storm, they might call to one another, they might find some semblance of formation as a way to draft or spell one another when tired. No one knows what they do. No one has ever seen how birds survive in the eye of a monster storm the size of Helene.

Like so many of us, I have been deeply concerned and touched as we read and hear more about the devastating effects of Helene. The images coming out of Florida, Georgia, South and North Carolina have been heartbreaking. The range of the devastation is so large that incredible numbers of people have either been directly ( or someone they know and love) has been directly impacted in soul shaking ways. Hurricane Helene dwarfed other major hurricanes in size, speed of intensity and harm. Whole communities are still without electricity, internet, cell phone coverage. Because many roads are still impassible, there are shortages of food and water. Emergency systems are doing the best they can. Projections are that it will take years for these areas to recover and rebuild. Friends, families, neighbors and communities are doing what they can to help one another — calling or visiting if possible, sharing group meals of all the food that has thawed from freezers, clearing roads and driveways, searching for the lost, checking in on the very old and very young, bringing water, clothes, rides to shelters. Like all the displaced birds, they live for a bewildering time in a state of unknowing, having passed through the worst of the storm, only to find themselves in a town or on a mountain or beach or woods or lake or river they do not recognize. And yet, there is comfort in the kind of care we give one another when troubles come. These are the times when those who are doing a little better give help to those who are more in need. We put blankets around one another’s shoulders, when the storm has passed and the birds are looking for the way home.

There is a powerful Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice that focuses on compassion called Tonglen. The word Tonglen translates to “giving and taking” in Tibetan. In Tonglen, a practitioner imagines taking in the suffering and pain of others (or oneself) on the in-breath and then sending out love, healing, and compassion on the out-breath. It is a way to develop compassion, but to also send a particular kind of help, love and connection into the world. Often the practitioner will visualize the suffering they want to help heal, they may visualize transforming that shadow into light and then they breathe it out with a sense of relief, healing and expansion. It is a beautiful practice that I have done regularly for many years. I do what one person can do directly to help or heal or bring something of light into the world around me. But the world is large and the suffering is too great for one person alone to fix. And so the Tonglen is a way to be a part of the invisible threads of love and connection and healing that happens within us and between us.

I’ve been doing the Tonglen this week for all those suffering in the wake of Helene. Breathing in and breathing out. Sending love….because it matters.

All of this environmental devastation is also happening in the midst of a divisive and increasingly ugly political season. It feels like another kind of storm roaring through the country, spooling out in our social media feeds. The flames of fear and anxiety are being fanned by misinformation and lies, sweeping like a hurricane and damaging the infrastructure and fabric of our communities. I believe in the strength of our democratic system, but I also sense that the social upheaval and political hurricane of these uncertain times will leave its mark, and like the aftermath of Helene, it will take a long time to repair and reweave all the connecting threads that have been weakened or broken.

Like the birds at the eye of the storm, we are calling to one another. We are flying in sometimes unusual flocks. We are doing what we can and supporting and spelling one another when we are tired. We don’t know what it is going to look like when the storm of the first Tuesday in November has passed, but I sense it will look unfamiliar for quite some time.

Keep Breathing….Keep leaning into what is still sustains us in beautiful and true ways. Send help in all the ways you can. Send love….because it matters.

Send Love, It Matters

Somewhere someone needs help.
Send love.
It matters.

If you can’t get there yourself,
then take a deep breath.
Breathe in the weight of their troubles.
Breathe out and send all those burdens
into the Light
where sorrows can be held
with the most tender and infinite grace.

Breathe in what you can do.
Breathe out what you can’t change.
Spool out a thread of connection,
send courage and calm.
For the nights can be long
and filled with shadows,
and sometimes terrible
unexpected waters will rise.

Somewhere someone needs help.
Send love.
It matters.

 ©2022 Carrie Newcomer. From Until Now: New Poems

Practice

Today, go outside and find a quiet place. Breathe for a few moments. If you feel so led, say a prayer or meditate (or practice the Tonglen) for all those effected by Hurricane Helene.

Question

Do you have a favorite quote or phrase you say when you need encouragement? If you feel so led, please feel free to share that quote or phrase with our community today.

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Other Ways To Send Love

We are sending love…but if you are also interested in sending funds to a reputable organization working specifically with recovery efforts for Hurricane Helene, here is a link to The American Red Cross/ Helene Recovery.

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Sanctuary

Will you be my refugee, my haven in the storm……

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This Week on NPR's Mountain Stage.

You can hear Carrie & Gary Walters on 260+ NPR stations starting Friday October 4, 2024 Airtimes and stations can be found here: 
https://www.mountainstage.org/radio/Pages/Radio-Affiliates.aspx   

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