We rise by lifting others

Here is a letter I wrote to a community I belong to when that tribe was at a low point. When we had suffered losses. When the future was uncertain.

Fell free to use this, all or part of it, and share it, when you find yourself in a similar situation.

Friends,

Today is not a day for lofty, encouraging stories, dorky pictures of my childhood, or inspiring words.  

Today is a day when we have friends who are experiencing a difficult time and the next season may not be what they expected.

I want to encourage you, as I have in the past, to be there for one another in these times of dramatic change.  

While this is not the time for the words of a stranger, it IS the time for the company and the presence of a friend.

A strange time, because we are not always able to be physically in each other’s company, but that should not stop you from sharing something with another person who you know is experiencing challenges today.

Find just one person who needs you to literally or metaphorically “sit beside them,” one person who needs that little nudge, the short note or text, the humorous meme or GIF, the shared memory of previous times you both once thought insurmountable-only to be talking together, today, on the other side.  

Take the time today to simply remind someone they are not taking these next steps into uncharted territory alone.

The very human tendency we all have is to give folks space when they are hurting or processing.  There is something to that. Our mirror neurons do not like feeling what our less fortunate tribe mates are feeling.

Do it anyway and do it thoughtfully.

If you are afraid of making a mistake or saying the wrong thing at the wrong time…

…do it anyway…

…keep it simple, but err on the side of connection over distancing.

The future may require new tools for navigation as we take imperfect and unsure steps forward.  Let’s take them together.

“We rise by lifting others.” Robert Ingersoll

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