What Do We Do Now?

I must admit that the past couple of weeks have been a struggle for me, and I daresay millions of American women. I have alternately been deeply frightened, livid with anger, sad and depressed. I have been left with a feeling of deep helplessness and hopelessness in the face of this war on women.

Although the Supreme Court’s decision is not yet final, it will take a miracle of major proportions for Roe v. Wade to stand. It feels like a gut punch, and I don’t know what to do with all the feelings that are coming up for me. We are going back to the dark ages when women had no agency over their own lives, and it is a terrifying step backwards. As women on a spiritual path, what are we to do with these feelings as we watch our human rights being taken away?  

The truth is, I don’t know. The great spiritual teachers say to let our feelings flow through us, to sit with them, and allow them their full range, even when it isn’t comfortable. We are to be love and radiate love, even to those who are our enemies.

Right now, that is an extremely difficult thing to do. I don’t feel like radiating love. I am angry. Because of a mostly old white men, women will die. Intelligent women, strong women. Women who have much to contribute to society. Women and children, men and families will be doomed to lives of poverty and deprivation because they can’t afford another child or because a single sixteen-year-old mom will not have the resources to further her education. With no exceptions for rape or incest, children will be forced to bear children and women will have to deal with the emotional trauma of assault for the rest of their lives. And that is just the beginning.  It is a disaster of major proportions for all women and the men who love them.

I used to think that the spiritual and political could be separate, but I no longer believe that it is possible. I cannot be silent in the face of what is happening politically. If I don’t speak out, I am complicit in the deaths of women. Because making abortion illegal will not end abortion, it will only end safe abortions.

Which leads me back to the question of what do we, who are on a spiritual path, do with these difficult feelings? There are several things that I am doing that might be helpful to you.

1. I am feeling my feelings. I am allowing them to flow through me. I am not ignoring them, stuffing them, or denying them. I am then allowing those feelings to inform my actions.
2. I am taking action, even if it feels hopeless. Even little things help me to feel like I am doing something. I am writing letters to my legislators. I am marching for women’s rights. I am giving money to organizations dedicated to women’s rights. I am praying, particularly for those who are in power, the very ones that I am angry with.
3. I am speaking up when I can. I recently had a conversation with a friend where I respectfully pointed out some ramifications that she had not thought about. It may not have changed her mind, but the conversation opened up some new things to think about.
4. I am trying to be love. When I truly follow the path of love, it leads me to consider the best possible life for the greatest number of people. The path of love values the life of a fully grown woman over the life of a clump of unformed cells. The path of love treats a woman as a whole person, not a womb or a vessel. The path of love supports children and families after a child is born. And, as difficult as it is, I am doing my best to send love to those I see as the perpetrators of this assault on women.

   5. I realize that I can only do what I can do. This is not going to be solved quickly, maybe not even in my lifetime. I must be prepared to deal with all the difficult feelings that will continue to arise as I do my best to make a difference in whatever small way that I can.

   My stance on this issue may not be your stance. However, it will take all of us – feeling, acting, praying, speaking out, and trying to make some small difference, for love to eventually win out. Blessings as you walk your path.

Barbara Garland
May, 2022