Be strong, sweet one

And also, be soft

Softness is the length to which you will keep your heart open

when the world feels hopeless

And there is more strength in that than in becoming hard

Your sensitivity is not a flaw or a liability

But a well of tender beauty that will help us find our way

It is in the shimmer of our eyes more than in the words we say

There will indeed be times we cannot say the words

For our throat is clenching in rumbling grief

And our chest feels about to rip open as if blocked from air

And the pain we feel will be because we care and feel so deeply we can’t stand it

But we will. We will stand it.

And we will cry and melt and hide, and maybe sometimes rage

And if we have learned how we will retreat to our safe place where we can plug into our own energy and hold ourselves tenderly and breathe,

release and recover

And then show up and do it all over,

rinse and repeat.

Sometimes we will feel battered by the energies of the world that once were “normal.”

And wonder how we ever swam in those waters.

Sometimes we will feel broken by the desperation and assaulted by the violence.

And it will be hard to filter it through.

But we will.

Because we know that our power resides in our hearts

That the depth of our capacity to feel is the breadth of our potential to evolve

And so we feel it.

And as we learn how, we claim it.

Without shame for the tears streaming down our faces.

Without apology for our experience.

Without adjusting for others’ comfort.

Warrior of the heart, there is nothing wrong with you.

It is not for you to get tougher, but through the strength of your love,

for the world to soften.

That is why we need you.

That is why we need all of us.