Guarding the Spirit in Troubled Times

One of the quietest, most effective weapons of oppression is not always brute force—it is exhaustion. Wear people down enough, and they grow too weary to resist. The violent “new normal” becomes ordinary. The moral lines we thought could never be crossed fade into the background.

Today, we see this tactic in plain sight—through a flood of noise, outrage, and distraction. Social media, while sometimes a tool for connection and truth-telling, is also engineered to keep us scrolling, reacting, consuming without pause. And when the platforms themselves are shaped by forces that align with white supremacy and exclusion, the harm multiplies—especially for our most vulnerable neighbors.

Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us, “The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence.” But constant stimulation robs us of that presence. The Dalai Lama says, “Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.” In moments like these, protecting that peace is not selfish—it is how we keep the fire of compassion alive.

Gandhi taught, “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” But gentleness is born in rested, grounded hearts. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” Yes, yes, yes, we must speak—but we must also learn to step back, to breathe, to listen deeply.

This is not disengagement—it is resistance. By tending to our own aliveness, we make it impossible for any regime, any platform, any campaign of fear to kill our spirit.

So, breathe. Step outside. Sit with a friend. Let the sky remind you of its vastness. And return—ready to do the work, steady and unafraid.