The car’s steering wheel was a circle of cold this early morning, a reminder that gloves are needed now. Frost silvered the ground, frosting the pumpkin patch at the farm down the road. Wood smoke scented the air. Maine’s Fall is shifting towards Winter.
The sun cleared the tree line, transforming Autumn’s remaining tree leaves — the fading golds, reds, and rusts — into a stained glass mosaic against the dawn’s gray blue sky.
Light changes everything. A reminder to pay attention. That possibilities happen every moment if we but have eyes to see. That beauty and wonder are waiting to be discovered.
I love that. Love the reminder that there is more to consider, more to be aware of than our mental habits allow. We are free to see, to learn, to discover — if we but choose to.
Nothing could be more important, especially these days.
Today is Kamala Harris’ 55th birthday. She is someone who reminds us to pay attention, whose very presence can allow us to see things in a new way, that there is more to consider than we had perhaps thought of.
Like the light changing everything, Kamala is a gift if we but see her. Really see her.
For she sees us.
“July 17th, 1996 - I lost my youngest son. I lost him to gun violence. It devastated my family. Devastated the community. There were 96 homocides that year in San Francisco. My son’s was number 53. I had to fight. I could’nt stay silent. I had to do something. The mothers, many of us got together and tried to figure out a solution. Kamala Harris was the only one speaking our language. It was as if she too had lost someone to gun violence. That’s how it felt. That’s the kind of person she is. She felt our pain. She understood that first hand. You know, she attended those funerals. She kept her office door open. She was a friend in the criminal justice system. And that’s what we need. Finally we had someone in our corner. Finally, someone understood what we were going through with the devastation of gun violence and the impact. And that’s the kind of person we want to run our nation. We need that kind of leadership from somebody who will keep the door open, not shut the door. We need leadership like that. “
She hears us.
No matter the issue, the pain and struggle, she sees and hears us.
She sees all of us. Sees how we’re all connected. Sees how the issues we care about are all connected.
Think about it, the ways she sees and hears all of us. Think about the courage and caring it takes to do so, for it does. It takes strength to care.
It takes strength to face others’ grief, pain, rage, and loss. And she has done so for decades. She has faced it all and fought to find justice for those afflicted. She has fought the good fight as a Black Woman in a white man’s world. Her courage, her caring and determination is unmatched.
That’s what she is doing now for all of us. Fighting to make justice real for a country under attack from within and without. She is our Joyful Warrior, our advocate for fairness and accountability. Our fighter for the people. Our reminder that courage, caring, decency, brilliance, and joy do have a place in our national life.
And today is her birthday.
I so hope she and Doug have the day off together. The stesses and strains of the campaign trail can be exhausting. To spend so much time apart, a sorrow to carry. Doug’s devotion, his willingness to throw himself into this political season with so much at stake speaks volumes.
Kamala and Doug are risking everything in order to fight for us, for our country.
Yes. There is. I try not to think too much of the dangers that Kamala and Doug face, but that awareness is there. They don’t allow the threats to stop them from standing up, showing up, for all of us.
People are responding to the honesty, authenticity, brilliance, toughness, and caring that is Kamala. People know that she sees them, and they’re standing up for her. The coalition is growing.
We must stand up, show up, too.
We do that, together, we will rise.
Together we will see Doug standing by Kamala’s side as she is sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. Our country will then be on it’s way out of this current nightmare and into a brand new day.
Until then we have work to do. A light to shine.
Today, let us celebrate the life of a remarkable human being - a woman of intellect, courage, caring, dedication, and joy. A woman who never stops fighting for the best in us. The woman who inspires us to rise, to be more than we thought possible.
Happy Birthday, to the woman who never stops seeing and fighting for the best in us!
Lets send Kamala a birthday present. It can be for five dollars, 55 dollars, or anything in between. Doesn’t matter. It’s the thought, caring and respect, that counts. Besides, the idea of flooding her campaign with birthday donations is just plain fun. Makes me smile. And you can volunteer for her campaign too! Everything we can do matters. You matter.
A very blessed birthday to an amazing woman. Happy Birthday, Kamala. May your new year be filled with all good things for you, your loved ones, and our country. Thank you for being the gift that you are.
I forgot the cake!!