Quote from Jewel in her book "Never Broken"

"Happiness is not a perpetual state. It's not like saying, "I found Europe, I'm living in Europe now." You have to get happy with the process. To me, there's a real peace in accepting that, and being able to say life is never one thing. It's all things. The whole universe is expanding, stretching, tearing down, and creating, and we are made of the same stuff. We expand, contract, decay, and grow all at once. We are mirrors of the universe and the natural world and what created us. We are made like trees, with our roots firmly planted in the ground, and if we can see we are built to bend and give, then the winds of life will pass through our branches without breaking us. Some days it passes through with fury. Some days with a gentle caress. Each morning I wake up with gratitude that I can have the confidence to meet these ups and downs without being uprooted. The faith to step into pain when it comes and the courage to let it ravage me and pass through instead of hanging on to it and letting it tear me down. Life is ever-changing. What is consistent is knowing I am up for anything. That I am never broken." Jewel

"Being a good person matters." Van Jones

 

"Well, it's easier to be a parent this morning. It's easier to be a dad. It's easier to tell your kids character matters. It matters. Tell them the truth matters. Being a good person matters. And it's easier for a whole lot of people. 

"If you're Muslim in this country, you don't have to worry if the president doesn't want you here. If you're an immigrant, you don't have to worry if the president is going to be happy to have your babies snatched away or send Dreamers back for no reason. 

"It's a vindication for a lot of people who have really suffered. You know 'I can't breathe'? You know, that wasn't just George Floyd. That was a lot of people who felt they couldn't breathe. 

"Every day you're waking up and you're getting these Tweets and you just don't know, and you go in the store and people who have been afraid to show their racism would get nastier and nastier to you and you're worried about your kids and you're worried about your sister. Can she just go to Walmart and get back in her car without somebody saying something to her. 

"And you spent so much of your life energy just trying to hold it together. And this is a big deal for us just to be able to get some peace and have a chance for a reset. 

"And the character of the country matters. 

"And being a good man matters. 

"You know, I just want my sons to look at this--look at this--you know... it's easier to do it the cheap way and get away with stuff but it comes back around. It comes back around. And it's a good thing for this country. 

"I'm sorry for the people who lost; for them it's not a good day. 

"But for a whole lotta people, it's a good day."

Van Jones

• Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vanjones/videos/674129206640087
• YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eMoCW1Pq54

Say, “we live here, how about you?”

Guidelines

If they ask you what you are,  say Arab. If they flinch, don't react,  just remember your great-aunt's eyes.    If they ask you where you come from,  say Toledo. Detroit. Mission Viejo.  Fall Springs. Topeka. If they seem confused,    help them locate these places on a map,  then inquire casually, Where are you from?  Have you been here long? Do you like this country?    If they ask you what you eat,  don't dissemble. If garlic is your secret friend,  admit it. Likewise, crab cakes.    If they say you're not American,  don't pull out your personal,  wallet-sized flag. Instead, recall    the Bill of Rights. Mention the Constitution.  Wear democracy like a favorite garment:  comfortable, intimate.    If they wave newspapers in your face and shout,  stay calm. Remember everything they never learned.  Offer to take them to the library.    If they ask you if you're white, say it depends.  Say no. Say maybe. If appropriate, inquire,  Have you always been white, or is it recent?    If you take to the streets in protest,  link hands with whomever is beside you.   Keep your eyes on the colonizer's maps,     geography's twisted strands, the many colors  of struggle. No matter how far you've come, remember:  the starting line is always closer than you think.    If they ask how long you plan to stay, say forever.  Console them if they seem upset. Say, don't worry,  you'll get used to it. Say, we live here. How about you?

—Lisa Suhair Majaj

(Sent from my phone)

From the documentary “13th”

"People say all the time, 'well, I don't understand how people could have tolerated slavery?' 'How could they have made peace with that?' 'How could people have gone to a lynching and participated in that?' 'That's so crazy, if I was living at that time I would never have tolerated anything like that.'

And the truth is we are living in this time, and we are tolerating it."

Bryan Stevenson

Bout time - haven't you been feeling this way too?

Musician Jippy Lad created this song, "Bout Damn Time (BLM)" about the rising change we're seeing today for the #blacklivesmatter movement. I've got chills, take a listen: