What I have learned (unlearned, or may still be learning) from the month of June...
“We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever [people] are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.” (Elie Wiesel)
While we ache to do so, no single nurse (or other healthcare worker) can fix a flawed and ailing system. We can only do what we can, drawing our boundaries where we need to in order to do our best for those we work with. It is not on us alone to fill every gap and vacancy; something far beyond us needs to shift to heal this broken system.
Language is power - the preservation of endangered cultural languages, its use in vulnerable settings and with vulnerable people... Language can both empower and denigrate. It can be employed for the act of creation or used as a tool for destruction. Our words and the ways we use them, have consequence.
It is okay to grieve as we try to process things in our world beyond processing... And with this grief, we can come together and continue to fight for change.
I can no longer understand time, or how it is once again July and another year of my life marked.
Community is sacred, community is healing.
July 1st is a day to wear orange.
July 4th is a day to use the absence of our presence (whether we bear uteruses or not) to be heard loud and clear.
- S.
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