Ukraine, You and Me

That thing that you are feeling right now... you are not alone.

An image of you as a superhero fighting back a tyrant and defending innocent civilians comes to your mind. You see yourself like superman or superwoman flying straight into the Kremlin and fighting the tyrant. You wonder what you'd do if you were the President of a powerful country. Or you think how you'd use your money to hire an on-demand army to help the victims of a cruel invasion if you were ultra wealthy.

We imagine what we would do... "if...". And your blood boils, you clench your teeth, you close your fist. You are upset... because you can't do any of those things. You don't have a cape to fly to the Kremlin, and you are not the President of a powerful country, and you are not ultra wealthy.

You feel demoralized.

But... you are not alone. I too feel this way. And I bet there are many of us out there.

You feel this way because of what's happening in Ukraine, but not just Ukraine. It is the compounded effect of all the things we see happening: a pandemic, political polarization, social and racial unrest, profound inequality, subjugation of minorities in so many countries, savage political leaders in ravaged nations, hate, discrimination, violence... and now a tyrant invading a peaceful, independent, sovereign and democratic nation.

It's so much. We have gone through so much.

And you, and I, wonder: "is there something I can do?"

That's a significant question to ask ourselves. But one that has to be carefully responded.

If you think about our global problems in their largest scale, for example: a pandemic and a tyrannical army invading a peaceful nation, then the "is there something I can do?" becomes: "No. There isn't. There's nothing that I can individually do that would make a difference".

But that won't remove what you and I feel at this moment. That won't change how demoralized we may feel for not having a cape, or the Presidency, or money to "make a difference".

Thinking so globally and at such large scale quickly translates into an overwhelming feeling of despair and powerlessness, because we realize that whatever we do is too tiny and insignificant in the context of the big things happening around us.

Despair and powerlessness can and will certainly take a huge toll in us. They quickly turn into depression and a self-reinforcing cycle of: there world is fucked up, there is nothing I can do, the world is fucked up, there is nothing I can do...

But, yes.. the world often seems to be a fucked up place, but the fuckery often begins close to home.

And, it is precisely close to home where we can make a significant difference.

Close to home is where we are not powerless anymore, but powerful. That's when we can become the superheroes we daydream with. And instead of flying to the Kremlin to fight Putin, close to home we can "fly" to a friend's or coworker's house and be there for them. Close to home we don't need to be President of a powerful country, but simply a strong advocate for humanity.

In doing so, we just transformed powerlessness into true power.

So, to answer to the question "is there something I can do?", we must make an intentional effort to reframe our potential impact from global to local.

From thinking globally and at large scale to thinking how we can make a difference locally, around us, with the communities closer to us. From trying to prevent a war, to establishing a conversation with someone who thinks differently; from trying to stop a global virus to wearing a mask; from trying to stop hate to spreading love close to us.

That's how we embrace our extraordinary power to make a difference in the world.

Then, the answer to the question: "is there something I can do?" is... No, if we think that we will stop a war or a virus by ourselves. But... Yes, if we think about the impact we can have on the people around us.

To act locally, my message to you is to double down on three things:

Love: for one another. Love, especially when the things that divide us tighten their grip around us. It's easy to love when we are loved. Hard to love otherwise.

Community: bringing people together, connecting them by things that we care about and positively impacting the world with those communities.

Intentional action: making things happen. Not just talking about "things that should happen", but working on making them reality. Love and community (and everything in between: peace, tolerance...) don't "just" happen, they must be intentionally worked out, everyday. The forces of evil work nonstop to make the world a horrible place. We have to show them that they are the minority, that we don't want what they want and that we can act intentionally much better than them and in a more wonderful direction.

Of course, all of that must be built upon a strong foundation of kindness toward yourself and others.

Love, community and intentional action will move the needle forward. And they will shine bright light on the world... light that is emerging from you and your power.

Last, but not least, you are also powerful in another way: in choice. You can choose to not love, build community or act intentionally because you feel it may not make a difference. You can also choose the opposite, to double down on love, community and intentional action.

What's your choice?