On August 9, we had the pleasure of hosting Lydia Wylie-Kellerman, writer- activist and Director of Kirkridge Retreat and Study Center.
She led a workshop at Dominican Center. Her book “This Sweet Earth: Walking with our Children in the Age of Climate Collapse” had just become available to the public. She led participants through a Grief ritual, songs of lament and journal prompts offering gentle guidance for rich integration.
She invited participants to ponder and reflect, ”What does it mean to be a parent, grandparent or wise elder in the age of climate change? Climate anxiety touches nearly everything we do, but perhaps nothing so intimately as our parenting. We live in an era of climate collapse. We notice it in small ways; when the snow falls less or the cherry blossoms bloom too early. And in large ways: when our streets flood and entire towns burn to the ground “
Lydia considers how children offer us an opportunity to both give and receive wisdom necessary for life to flourish:
We all find the life that calls to our bones. Perhaps we nourish life by putting pen to paper or hands in the dirt. Perhaps we help those who are dying to walk with joy, or a classroom of kids to sing a little louder, or by feeding the birds. Perhaps we have claimed the title of aunt, uncle, godparent, neighbor, or friend to a beloved child. All of it is necessary.
Having kids has been one way for me to pour out my love in celebration of life. It has not made the grief lighter … perhaps it has deepened it. But it has also expanded my hope, my joy, my longings, and my insistence on what is possible in this moment. Community and imagination are powerful forces and gosh do these kids know how to call upon it. Don’t look away from death, but in its midst, choose life. Choose life. Choose life.
Wylie-Kellermann offers these words of wisdom:
Dear friends,
ask the hard questions.
Give thanks for uncertainty.
Trust yourself.
Lean into the wisdom of community.
Don’t take yourself too seriously.
Know that the arc is long.
Lean on the ancestors.
Ask the creatures for advice…
Follow the wind.
Know that there is no right way.
Trust others on their path.
Find yours.
Embrace the mess.
Give your life to a
holy, undeniable “Yes!”
Whatever that yes may be.
And know, that this “had to happen.”
How lucky we are to be alive!
