Hello friends, On an old garage somewhere in Southeast Portland, someone hand lettered a large message. The bulk of it reads “Matter would not have become us if it doubted our ability to change…” Now, on one hand it reads as the start of a philosophical discussion I would’ve engaged in during my teens or early twenties. On the other hand, though? Well, it made me pause and snap a photo, didn’t it? Despite being more than a bit of an animist, I can’t begin to comprehend whether matter itself has a cohesive thought process. But change is baked into life, is it not? And therefore the ability to change is also baked in. And therefore, I would argue, so is our ability to choose change. As the great Octavia Butler wrote: All that you touch You Change. All that you Change Changes you. The only lasting truth Is Change. God Is Change. Why is this message important today? Because too many people look at human history and despair of our ability to change in nurturing, healthy ways. We continue to become trapped in cycles of greed, hatred, and violence. That is distressingly obvious. But we are also continuously engaged in cycles of creativity, love, and connection. I hope that is obvious, too. It all depends on what we focus on. By claiming our ability to change, we honor a future worth building. We all have a part to play, if we choose to do so. What do you think? Best wishes — Thorn
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Hello friends, I write this from Portland, Oregon, which is under threat from the US Federal Government right now. This week, as the political landscape looks worse than ever, I’m choosing to celebrate small victories and cultivate pleasure. One: The first tiny victory I’d like to share is that, when I logged into my Libby Library app looking for ebooks to read, I found that a kind librarian had given my book Sushi Scandal a thumbs up and sweet recommendation! This lifted my heart and made me...
Hello friends, I posted a picture of a cat on social media this morning with the caption “Sometimes we need to speak up.” It was a close up of the beautiful creature talking to me. Here it is: Close up photo of a meowing cat. But there’s a story behind that photo, one that relates to so many of us right now. The cat wasn’t just greeting me. The cat was asking me for help. Here's the story: On one of my walks, I spied this cat watching me. I stopped and greeted it when it was still a couple of...
Hello friends, It’s the time of the equinox, which means the sun appears to rise and set due east and due west. Also, day and night appear to exist in equal measure. It is a time of balance. A time to pause and reflect. Time. I keep repeating that word. As I approach my sixtieth revolution around the sun—yes, I was born just past the autumnal equinox—I feel the acceleration of time. But I also notice the steadiness of life itself. In youth, time stretches, yet life itself often feels...