sankofa

I am a pollyanna at heart, every damn day, pandemic or no.

But these days, like many of you, I feel absolutely saturated with worry and grief. This morning I and many others ran 2.23 miles to bring attention to Amhaud Arbery's death and the tremendous injustice surrounding it, lest it be lost in all of the other news about tragedy and worry.

The miles were quiet, and dark, lit only by the gleaming supermoon dipping low, truly a time for reflection and strength-gathering.

I am reminded of the TEDxNCState talk I just watched, by Kamal Bell of Sankofa Farms in Durham, NC.

Below you can watch the talk, and a bit about the farm.

The Ghanaian legend of the Sankofa bird for which the farm is named, teaches, in part: "Whatever we have lost, forgotten, forgone, or been stripped of can be reclaimed, revived, preserved, and perpetuated."

We can go back for it.

We can reclaim only that which we are paying attention to when it is under threat. And attention requires our strength and energy and will, which feel in short supply.

But we have that strength and energy and will among us, good people. We have them among us. Connect, lift each other up, be lifted when you need it, keep your eyes and your hearts open, even when it hurts.

Mr. Rogers said, find the helpers. Today, to me, the helpers are everywhere. They are the musicians, the activists and archivists, the mayors and nurses and teachers and tip-pool organizers and poets and hustlers, the undaunted entrepreneurs.

One of our Cook School mottos (attributed to Arthur Ashe) is:

Start Where You Are

Use What You Have

Do What You Can

May it be so.