Loving in Action, Together

Hard times indeed. It's so good to have Holiday Market to ground me and keep me working and focused. It was the best place to be to hear the news of the passing of one of our Market family, River, to hug each other and be alive to honor her. Grieving was put off until later but at the same time, shared, and felt rich and powerful. Just seeing familiar smiling faces and sharing ideas and reflections is so much more powerful than looking out the window at the rain and trying to motivate to do something useful.

I believe the election fraud is a fact, and this is not the first hacked election, but perhaps this time the people who think so will be louder than before. When it went to the Supreme Court with Gore, even that was managed (you can tell when they have t-shirts of a particular color and look very organized, so watch for that.) You used to be able to tell that these fake movements were organized, and it has been international, and I would expect one this time too, a counter-protest. There are probably plenty of red trucker hats available. Don't be fooled. Critical thinking is one of our powers.

The popular vote is way out of kilter to the results. I don't know if I believe protest will change things, but it is the tool we have. The internet is where we gather too, and it's big.

Getting together at the Fairgrounds has some qualities that repeat and bring warmth and love. The Kareng Fund gets busy providing what we can for artisans in crisis, and we made two grants this week. This little safety net is so precious because it comes from us. Most of our donations are from other artisans who want to help, so we put our dimes and pennies to work for each other. This will also be our major period of fundraising, so put some items aside for the baskets and some cash aside to buy tickets for the raffle. A big thanks to the Oregon Country Fair Board for a contribution to the printing of our brochures so we can reach more artists and crafters in Oregon.

Reach out to fellow artisans if you hear them describing hardship...ask them about it or let one of the KF Board know, or simply give them a brochure. We fund "career-threatening crises" and that includes not only health issues but domestic ones as well. If you are having blocks to your ability to produce and market your work that you can't handle alone, you might be eligible for a grant. Please don't suffer thinking there is no one out there who cares. It is more likely that people are hanging back because they care so much, that they feel devastated by the great need to be witnessed.

I do feel that this is a period of unveiling when racism, sexism, and corruption are in the light. It is the time to speak up to set the conditions of the world we want: honest, equal, open to possibility. It isn't the time to stay in the cave. It won't be easy and it will be discouraging that the progress will be slowed and complicated by the US political situation, but it isn't just about us and the world will join the efforts. Indeed, many people in the world have been working hard on these issues for a very long time...the movements are continual and haven't paused while we grieved. Our grief is an important step for us to crack open the comfort we retreat to, because we can, but we are watching people fight much harder than most of us think we can. We can fight for a better world, and we must.

We need to call back the energy we felt at other times when the path looked wider and less fraught with personal danger. We rose to greet Obama with hope and we rose to stand with Bernie with conviction, and they are still there to lead and help us stand our ground. There are so many of us, that if we do speak up, it will be loud. We certainly have a lot to lose if we don't.

Step out of comfort, take a chance on connection, help fan the flames of dissent, and put your energies where they can add to that of others. Your contributions can be small, even miniscule, even hesitant, even shy, but keep going in the right direction. We all know the world we want. There are many places we agree, as humans on this planet. There is so much work to do. Do some of it. Start anywhere.

It's cold and wet. People are sad and scared. Light a candle, honor a bee, feed the birds, smile at someone you don't know. Keep yourself healthy. Promote the health of all of us. Stay in this together. We are the people of the world.

And you can find the Empathy Tent at the Farmers' Market next door to us. Use the listeners to quell your irrational fears and let go to connection. Remind yourself how powerful you feel at your best. Do the work that needs to be done. Love yourself, so that you have love to give.

I know Buy Nothing Day has shifted to Create Something Day and Teach-In day, and it is still a day to consider your money power and put it wisely to work for what you want to see. You want art and craft in your community, so feel good about supporting Holiday Market. I'll see you there.