Hope Of What Is Possible

Depending on what your eyes have been seeing lately, the world might be feeling like a very harsh place - threats to safety, freedom, and civility abound. My eyes have spent a fair amount of time striving to keep up with news, and the impact of policies on people from Grand Blanc and Chicago to Gaza and Sudan. It appears that fear, loss, and hatred are everywhere.

 

And yet my eyes have also been taking in the wonder of this cross-cultural community. Our team Slack #Celebration channel is consistently overflowing with goodness. Last week, a video was shared of women clinking their glasses to what's ahead. Women who have walked together for 6 weeks in community and in their preferred language: unpacking migration trauma, developing a personal narrative around their journey, and learning new coping skills. They celebrated this collective journey - even as so many are speaking to their unwelcome in this country - because they know they are seen, held, and delighted in here at Treetops. 

 

 

I hope you are finding ways to stay informed, but I also hope that you balance this with formation, protecting sacred rhythms, and pursuing deep connection with people around you. Are you having face to face interactions with neighbors? Smiling at the boy dribbling the basketball down the street as you drive home from work? Holding a door open? Hosting a small gathering to remind people they are not alone? 

 

We each have the power to make the world feel a little softer and kinder. Not only will that create a sense of safety for our neighbors, but I think we will also feel safer when we develop this connective tissue. The reciprocity and mutuality embedded in deep community is a win for us all. And right here, right now is the only ground we have to truly love the world.

 

I've recently said to a few people how sad I am that people have built so many walls within themselves that they no longer can notice the humanity in others. I don't think it would be possible for someone to spend a day at Treetops and not believe our newest neighbors add tremendous value. I don't think they could hold the belief that immigrants and refugees are people they need to fear. I think they might even find that they too are looking for a sense of belonging.

 

Goodness do I wish that people bear witness to this, for the good of our country and its many immigrants and refugees, but also for the good of that one person who can now walk more gently in the world.

 

Let's continue to shine a light on the beauty of cross-cultural community together - it brings me great hope of what is possible if more people could simply experience the wonder of what places of welcome like Treetops feel like!