We blinked and it’s Thanksgiving…

Wisdom means seeing into the heart of things, beneath the surface of our contradictions, where there is no good nor bad, neither right nor wrong. It means seeing the human being as the animal he is, struggling to gain security yet be free, to be productive but also joyful, to seek pleasure but also to know pain, to hope for transcendence and yet be content that one is contained within a finite body. It is to know that love does not exist without the possibility of hatred. It is to know that there is a time for living and a time for dying. It is to know that the individual exists to celebrate life.

– Alexander Lowen

Hi everyone,

So, I blinked and it’s Thanksgiving week (and for some, Chanukah too)…

For me the subjective sense that time is going by so very quickly only reaffirms the need to live and live every moment. Last year this time I was dealing with a bit of shock after noting the death of four people close or well-known to me who had all passed within a two month period of time, plus the loss of a beloved feline family member. This year I sit with the sadness of two recent suicides. Life is uncertain. Life is short. We must live the life we have to its fullest extent, and celebrate life.

There is so much I am grateful for, so much that we all have to be grateful for.

How would life be different for us all if, like the Desmond Tutu quote on Ubuntu, we really allowed it to permeate deep into our being, the self-assurance that comes from knowing we are part of and belong within the greater whole? And — that we are diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, tortured or oppressed…

If we genuinely lived in pursuit of the common good, what would that look like?

So, before I blink again and find that 4th of July fireworks are going off, I want to thank each one of you for being a part of Living Ubuntu. I am deeply grateful for your presence, engagement, and support.

I hope to see you at one of our partners’ upcoming events noted below. Watch for another email coming soon giving a preview of next year’s projects and events.

For now, I hope you fully enjoy the holidays. Celebrate life.

Thank you,

Barbara English
Founder & Executive Director, Living Ubuntu
http://livingubuntu.org
(949) 891-2005

[Ubuntu] n. Every human being truly becomes a human by means of relationships with other human beings.

::: UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS :::

Winter Wonderland — A Tiyya Foundation Fundraiser
Saturday, December 7, 7p — Mission Viejo
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Write for Rights & Bake Sale — Amnesty International – Irvine
Sunday December 8, 10a — Irvine
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