Reflections on May 2022

May has been a busy month.

We started the month with a celebration of AANHPI heritage and recognized the contributions of AANHPI to American history -- from the early Japanese immigrants, to the Chinese railroad laborers, to the AANHPI who have contributed to science, technology, the arts, medicine and more. With the inception of this month, we acknowledged and recognized acts of hate that have increased since the pandemic, took a stance against xenophobia and made commitments to stand up to hate.

Then mid-month, our community was shaken when one of our Providence doctors, Dr. John Cheng, died sacrificing himself so that others may live.?In order to protect a group of elderly parishioners, he charged, unarmed, a gunman who had planned an attack on a defenseless group. A gunman motivated by hate to kill a group of elderly churchgoers because they were Taiwanese.?Dr. Cheng was a man who touched the lives of many.?Someone who embodied what it means to be a doctor; a listener, a giver, a healer.?To his patients, his colleagues, his family, and his community.

The subsequent events at Uvalde, Texas followed.?Schoolchildren and teachers massacred by guns.?Such an act, incomprehensible and harrowing, sparks anger and fury, and yet, we as a society are no longer quite as shocked when it happens.?Because it happens far too often.

And so at the end of May, coming off the heels of Memorial Day, a day of remembrance for those who have sacrificed so that others may be free, I leave you with the words of Amanda Gorman and her call to action -- and our call to action -- in light of all that has happened this May.

May we not just grieve, but give:

May we not just ache, but act;

May our signed right to bear arms

Never blind our sight from shared harm;

May we choose our children over chaos.

May another innocent never be lost.

-????????Excerpt, “Hymn for the Hurting,” Amanda Gorman