Blog
I Believe…
Janelle Sorensen
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Everywhere you turn these days, crisis seems to be the word of the hour - financial crisis, housing crisis, environmental crisis - I even saw “A-Rod Crisis” in a headline. I did a Google News search and found that the word “crisis” had been used by the media almost 650,000 in just 24 hours.
What does it mean? Is the Apocalypse looming? Is the current convergence of crises the beginning of the end? I’m an eternal optimist, so I have a hard time believing that, but things certainly do not look encouraging. Still, as a parent, I have to believe we can make things better. I can accept nothing less for my children.
It turns out, there’s still an abundance of belief in our capacity to turn things around. This month’s Green Moms Carnival focused on the simple, but powerful words “I believe.” And, according to The Smart Mama, “this amazing group of women took that phrase and ran with it, to some of the most amazing and inspiring collection of blogs. Most of them found it a hard subject to tackle, but I found their thoughts truly inspirational.” I did, too. Thank you once again Green Moms (and all caretakers of children and the Earth).
Coincidentally, Christopher just shared a link with me from NPR’s series, “This I Believe,” in which a seven year old boy tells thirty of his beliefs. They are starkly simple, and elegantly powerful, including:
• I believe life is good.
• I believe we can help people.
• I believe everyone is weird in their own way.
• I believe hate is a cause for love.
• I believe people should not give up.
That last one really struck me. He’s right (and it shouldn’t take a seven year-old to remind us), but we should not give up. The word “crisis” comes from the Greek word “krisis” meaning “decision.” The word “apocalypse” comes from the Greek word “apokalypsis” meaning “lifting of the veil.” According to Wikipedia, “today the term is often used to refer to the end of the world, which may be a shortening of the phrase apokalupsis eschaton which literally means ‘revelation at the end of the æon, or age’.”
So, let’s embrace the crises as opportunities for us to make better decisions. Let’s embrace our self-created “apocalypse” as an opportunity to lift our veils, open our eyes, and start a new age of sustainability, prosperity, and health for all.
I believe it’s the dawning of a new and better age. Do you?
More comments:
Posted by lynn from organicmania.com on 02/16/2009 at 09:12 PM
What a beautiful post, Janelle, and well worth waiting for…
Yes, I do think we’ve had a reckoning with these latest crises and I think it will lead to a new and better age.
Thanks for your contribution to the Green Moms carnival!