June 19, 2025
I've seen some true magic this week.
I've seen some gross human behavior too.
These are the two opposing views that have been swirling in my mind lately and I think I've finally come to a decision on which one matters. I think I'm probably like most elder millennials when I say I keep my phone by my bed and I go to sleep scrolling, sometimes even slapping myself in the face with my giant hand computer when I doze off. It's the last thing I see before I close my eyes and the first thing I hold when I wake each morning. I almost can't wait to get on it, to see what new headline catches my attention and then I spend countless hours ingesting all this information.
I've never thought about where all the junk I consume goes each morning until this week. Have you ever thought about it? I don't know if our minds are infinite. I'm not a neuroscientist or a specialist on my brain. I can speak from a spiritual and emotional standpoint only. I know that what I pour into myself, determines what gets poured out. The Bible speaks on the mind and about what we should think about. I know that if I isolate myself, believing every lie that comes in my mind, I get pretty dang depressed pretty quickly. If I can make that connection, why is it so crazy to think that every crappy headline I read, doesn't do the same thing for my morale?
So many distractions have pulled me in each and every direction known possible to man. It's all doom and gloom all the time, 24/7. I'm saying to my husband, the Today show is stupid because they aren't actually reporting about all the terrible things that are happening in the world and in our government and to people all over. It seems like this weird happy pretend everything is okay moment and the justice for all advocate in me is screaming, "WE MUST SAVE THEM ALL!" Let me be clear, yes, those things are happening and yes, we are living in unprecedented times and all that jazz. One hundred times yes, but I've come to this conclusion and as much as it pains me to say it, that I can't do anything about all of it.
I can't do anything about our government. I can't do anything about the choices it makes. I can't do anything about the state of the world. I have no control over what happens in Ukraine, Gaza, or America. I can do my part. I can vote in local elections. I can hope. I can pray for those in need. I can donate to certain causes that tickle my fancy, but I can't do it all. What I can do, is live in my community, doing the best I can while supporting my neighbors.
I am in a book club on Thursdays and today one of the women made a statement that really stuck with me. She said that we weren't meant to consume all this information and news cycles. Our ancestors didn't have all these distractions that took them outside their communities. They had these little pockets of knowing and it included everything immediately around them.
It's like that map activity you learn in early elementary school about spatial awareness. You start with yourself, in your house, on your block, in your neighborhood, in your town, and it moves out until you see how you fit into this beautiful element called life. We all probably dream about being known in a way that brings fame and fortune but celebrity doesn't touch everyone. Social media reels have us fooled big time. Everyone is not a star, nor were they intended to be.
I don't want to leave an empty social media facade when I can leave a legacy. I don't want to waste away years of my life chasing an emptiness when I can be the woman of wisdom whose actions hold water. I'm responsible for me. Any contributions I make, are going to be felt most by my inner circle. The seemingly small actions are going to be the ones that make the most impact. I don't need to know what our president is doing or what Vladimir Putin or Netanhanyu think about it. I guess the question I'm asking of myself is: what's most important?
And that's when the magic comes in. When I stop diverting my attention on the endless barrage of negativity of this world and I focus on the things that God graciously gifted me with. I jump back to that mapping activity and it starts with me. What am I doing? How am I honoring God and living a life that is wisdom-led and scripture-fed?
Next, I turn to my next circle, my home, my sweet husband and kids. How am I honoring God living among my smallest community? Then, I turn to my next circle, my friendships, extended family, and responsibilities outside the home. Once again I ask, "How am I honoring God and living a life that is wisdom-led and scripture-fed?"
That's all I'm responsible for. Period. My hope is that whatever and whoever I pour into, will go forth and together, we will make our side of the map a better place. That's it.