Yesterday, at our Institute of Magnificence and the Center for Spiritual Living, we were blessed by a guest speaker from Unity Columbine in Colorado. She gave a powerful talk called “Creating a Love Wave.” Within her message, she reexamined the inhumane treatment inflicted by human beings upon one another throughout history. Because it is Black History Month, she focused on slavery.

She made a statement that I felt in the very marrow of my bones. I’m paraphrasing slightly, and you can hear it in depth here:

“We took thousands of people out of Africa, put them in chains, and brought them here to sell off like cattle. What made us think that was okay?”

I wept at her words. They went straight to my heart. What makes us think it is okay to treat others with such cruelty?

I bring this into the present day and the inhumane acts transpiring around immigration. Whether we agree about immigration or politics doesn’t matter. I’m sure we can all agree that no one needs to be hurt, tortured, or suffer the violence of our need to “get rid of” or “clean out”… what, exactly?

There is a lot happening right now, and at times I have a hard time looking at it. And yet, I am encouraging us to truly look—take it into our hearts—and do something about it. Call. March. Help in any way we can. Let’s not look in the other direction.

During the Holocaust, six million Jews, along with gay people, people with disabilities, and others, suffered at the hands of ignorance—and at the hands of people who turned away and refused to acknowledge that something horrific was happening. We do not have that excuse today. We have the internet, cell phones, and countless ways of communicating. We can see what is happening up close and personal.

I know we often say, “What can I do?” Beyond calling our representatives and marching, we can help in deeply personal ways. As Rev. Sue said yesterday, we can create our own “Love Wave.” We can be kind in our own worlds. We can speak kindly to one another. We can practice random acts of kindness. We can refuse to engage in anger and hatred. We can find ways to serve our communities.

We can be the helpers Mr. Rogers spoke of in his famous, comforting words to children during scary times: “Look for the helpers.” We can do more than look for the helpers—we can be the helpers.

I am scared in some ways, and I am encouraged in many more. I see people standing up and expressing the consciousness of Love. Let’s continue. Please, let’s continue.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year. It is the Year of the Fire Horse. I’m not a big follower of astrology, but I can definitely take a ride on this one. The horse is a powerful creature—it loves to run, it is directional, it has intention, it carries the energy of freedom. And yet, horses can be trained and coerced to serve their masters. That is not the Fire Horse—so don’t confuse them.

We are the Fire Horse: innately free, innately intentional, innately powerful.

Let’s run and kick up a storm like a herd of Love in Action.

With love and aloha,
Rev. Dr. Rita Andriello-Feren
Author & Co-Founding Director
CSL Kaua‘i • Institute of Magnificence • Partners in Empowerment