During the many weeks this summer when the air in Northern California was choked with thick grey smoke from the wildfires raging all around us, the air wasn’t safe to breath and entire days remained dark as twilight. Some of those weeks had record-setting temperatures which made my house stifling. When we first moved to Carmel Valley in 1984, uncomfortably hot days were so rare that we never noticed that our house lacked air conditioning. Now, intense heat is a much more frequent visitor, as are catastrophic fires. Climate change is no longer theoretical for us.

Myra’s daughter Marea (due in February), and grandson, Feliciano

While I was trapped inside for all those weeks, listening to the non-stop humming of air filters rather than chirping birds, it felt as if Armageddon had arrived. My daughter is pregnant with my third grandchild, due to take its first breath in February, and that inspired even more fear and heartache about the state of the world we’re leaving for our children.

Dr. Joanna Macy—a 91-year-old eco-philosopher, Buddhist scholar, author of a dozen books, and long-time social and environmental justice activist—believes it is very important for us to fully feel and express the sorrow and grief we experience in relation to the current state of our country and planet, because cognitive information about social and ecological calamities is insufficient to mobilize us. When we deny or repress our pain—or disregard it as a personal neurosis to be overcome—we shut down, which diminishes our motivation and power to do our part in the healing our world. By being willing to own and honor our anguish, we reconnect with life and our essential desire for the welfare of all beings.

In a 2017 Sounds True podcast interview, Macy said, “When we don’t fully process the issues that we’re facing and allow ourselves to feel and express our grief, outrage and dread, we are constantly repressing it, which leads to either shutting down and feeling paralyzed, or to panic… When you’re feeling this sadness, revulsion, and grief over what we’re doing… it is wholesome. It is healthy. Our pain for the world is simply one side of the coin, and the other side is our love for the world. They co-arise. Because why does it distress you to see the homeless and hungry and even little kids on the street? It’s because you know in your heart that’s not to be done.”

To help people transform despair and overwhelm into inspired, collaborative action, Joanna created the Work That Reconnects. In her teachings, she shares a model of three stories that can help us gain more perspective on the world we’re living in. The first story, “Business as Usual,” is about people who see little need for change. Economic recessions, extreme weather conditions, and social unrest are viewed as just temporary difficulties from which mainstream society will surely recover and from which corporations can benefit. This is a story that perpetuates patriarchy and white supremacy for the profit and power of a few.

The second story, the “Great Unraveling,” is the story told by scientists, journalists, and activists who draw attention to the many urgent and heartbreaking issues we are facing, including the effects of climate change, collapse of bee colonies, ecosystems that are being destroyed, the staggering numbers of refugees, and systemic racism. This is the story of the human species slowly heading towards extinction.

The third story is called the “Great Turning.” This is an inspiring story of transition from what Macy calls the “Industrial Growth Society” to a “Life Sustaining Society,” where we join together to act for the sake of life on Earth. In the Great Turning, our attitudes shift from exploitation to respect, from extraction to regeneration, and from competition to cooperation. The Great Turning involves the emergence of new and creative human responses, as well as a reawakening of sustainable indigenous traditions.

Joanna gives each story equal odds of winning out. She is not overly optimistic and believes that Americans tend to overrate hope. Joanna prefers to use the word “hope” as a verb—something you do more than something have. She calls this “Active Hope,” the type of hope that can actually make our dreams become our reality.

As we face this highly charged and hugely impactful election on Tuesday, I hope we all show our “Active Hope” by casting our ballots, encouraging our friends and families to do the same, and by remembering that the ultimate goal is for our human family to move towards deeper wisdom and a sense of unity, cooperation, respect and kindness. As Joanna says about our diverse species, “We may not feel it in a given situation, but we breathe the same air. We drink the same water. We are seeing the same sky. Our innards have the same beautiful intricacy and plumbing that brings forth new life… I don’t think we’re going to be able to make it around this challenge without rediscovering our love for this planet and our mutual belonging in her.”

For more wisdom about reconnecting and recommitting to Mother Earth from some of our Circle of Light collaborators, please read Myra’s newest article in Spirituality & Health magazine.