In the days leading up to Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, it is traditional to greet people with the wish that they be written in the Book of Life for a good year, for at the end of Yom Kippur God closes the book, sealing it and one’s fate for the year to come. But being written in the Book of Life depends on one’s relationships here on earth—which is, after all, where our fate is sealed.
What will you do today to build a relationship which will bring more life to your year to come?
When Columbus “discovered” the “new world” he felt entitled to claim it as belonging to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. But the people who already lived there had quite a different understanding of what it meant to belong to the land. Those mismatched understandings of land and belonging continue to play out hundreds of years later.
What land belongs to you? What land do you belong to?
“The truth is: Belonging starts with self-acceptance. Your level of belonging, in fact, can never be greater than your level of self-acceptance, because believing that you’re enough is what gives you the courage to be authentic, vulnerable and imperfect.”
—Brené Brown
What have you come to accept about yourself?
In the biblical story of Noah, God places the rainbow in the sky as a covenant between God and all life on earth. The rainbow flag is a sign of affirmation and pride for GLBT folk. All beings belong together on this earth, but sometimes you need to go out of your way to express who you include in that covenant of belonging.
What symbols or signs do you look for to tell you that you might belong in a new place?
Open to visitors. Open to the sun and air. Open to the view. Open to creativity. Open to possibility.
How do you cultivate a stance of openness?
