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Candlelight vigil after the killing of Alex Pretti
The main message for today: Two things can be true at the same time. If that's all you need, feel free to stop reading here. If you want more stories and color, keep going.
When Renee Good was killed, I was with my daughter at the spa where I teach in Mexico. We were having a marvelous time in a place that creates the world I wish we had - human, kind, slow, healthy, connected, caring. In a place where people generally don't talk politics, Good's death was the main topic. Still, we ate dinner, made new friends, and went hiking. The experience was a strange split screen. One reality in front of me. Another reality was when I talked to my family and friends at home. Still another when I landed back in Minnesota.
My best friend and I had a TV date when the announcement came out that there would be candlelight vigils all over the city to honor Alex Pretti. We bundled up, took our grief and our candles, and headed out to the frigid intersection near my house. We sang and stood in community. Then we returned to the finale of The Summer I Turned Pretty. (You can't get more shallow - and fun! - than that.)
Two things can be true at the same time. You can lose someone and still enjoy a friend's birthday party. You can be disappointed about something at the office and enjoy your children that evening. You can grieve, protest, and support your neighbors and still watch shallow TV.
Actually, you must. You know from years of working that too much of anything will burn you out (too much work, too much horror, too much Christmas, too much giving, too much stress), and when you are burned out, you aren't able to show up with your gifts.
We need all our gifts. And the dog still needs a walk
