Dear Friends,
This month, with all the upheaval and upset that surrounds our current political and social world, I thought it would be nice to offer here a few things that give me hope. My wish for all of us is that, no matter what our personal, political, or other circumstances and affiliations, we can reach towards that which is life-affirming, towards that which is unifying, towards that which is inspiring.
Here are a few things doing that for me:
The recent statement by the Boy Scouts of America that they will consider the stated gender of any applicant—rather than the gender reported on a birth certificate—as the criteria for determining admission into their Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts programs. This means that if a child self-identifies as a ‘boy’ then that’s good enough for the scouts.
The Million Women March was successful at organizing vast numbers of people safely; there we no injuries or arrests, and the marches went off peacefully around the world. This
demonstrates to me the on-going power of peaceful organizing as a unifying force in our world.
Giant pandas are no longer considered endangered.
Malaria and world hunger have reached record lows.
Wild tiger populations are increasing, for the first time in 100 years.
Last year, India turned on the world’s largest solar power plant in the state of Tamil Nadu.
The City of Delhi has banned disposable plastic this month.
6430 freshwater turtles were rescued in Southeast Asia last week.
The Norwegian government, along with corporations such as Nestle, Unilever, and Marks and Spencer have committed hundreds of millions of dollars to fund deforestation in Brazil.
University of Toronto students have invented an all-natural fire-log, called Moto, made of used coffee grounds, that will provide cooking fuel for refugees in refugee camps.
**thanks to “Postive News” and goodnewsnetwork.org for some of these items
I invite you to look for other local, and global stories of inspiration encouragement.
In faith and fellowship,
Rev. Carol