trust breeds hope, even when hope is in pieces

When trust is threatened, when our defences are breached, our animal instincts take over and we go still and quiet as a spooked cat - only moving our narrowed eyes to prepare our counter attack.

It occurs to me that our lives are built on trust. Are we being naive- to trust like this? Is trust essential to motion. Can we function without trust. And hope?

Does trust breed hope or is it the other way round. What do you think?

⭐️We trust that the cars on the road will stay in their lanes.

⭐️We trust that our mothers will protect us.

⭐️We trust our bosses to pay us at the end of the week.

⭐️We trust that the banks won’t steal our money.

⭐️We trust that our food is wholesome when it says natural.

⭐️We trust that our gardens will grow and feed us.

⭐️We trust that an organic label means the food is organic.

⭐️We trust that our dogs won’t chew on us while we sleep.

⭐️We trust that each step will find the floor.

⭐️We trust that the school gates will open at eight.

⭐️We trust the dishwasher to wash the dishes.

⭐️We trust that our supreme leaders won’t actively destroy relationships with each other. That they will not start wars out of spite. That they will not rattle the cages of fragile economies for their own personal gain. That they will not wreak havoc without cause then laugh in our frightened faces and say that was my plan all along. While doing some sleight of hand out of sight.

Or is that hope. Is this whole list about hope. Because we all know deep down in our neanderthal brain that much of trust is founded on love and the rest on hope. And often things go awry.

Trust that you can deal with it.

Trust, love and hope are fragile, delicate creatures, they respond well to feeding and nourishing. But once broken, trust is gone. Tattered hope follows it out the door. Love is always last to leave the room. But. Trust and hope are so strong, so essential that even as we lose them they will float back to us through another door hoping for another chance.

Trust anchors us. Hope keeps us alive. Love. Love is nebulous and airy and has wings. No-one knows where love will settle. Love is such an overused word I don’t even know what it means anymore. But I love the whispery sound of it when I feel it brush past me.

When trust is threatened, when our defences are breached, our animal instincts take over and we go still and quiet as a spooked cat and watch - only moving our narrowed eyes to prepare our counter attack. We prepare to leap. We bunch our muscles into springing knots and get ready to jump. We push the vulnerable behind us and prepare to whip them all safely out the door. This is how I felt the last few days.

Trust this feeling. Trust yourself.

And what should we do when you feel your trust and hope in our foundations waning? How do you find the right door? The right answer? Is it a question of energy. Of time. We are (once again) being worn down by our own reactions. When trust is fractured we become jumpy. We startle at every horror. We read the talking points that are designed to keep us high on adrenaline. And we feel the adrenaline in our heartbeats. Is the plan to keep us in a wild un-guarded state. Are we being herded. Because with each news shock there is also dinner time, school bells, dogs that need walking, doctors appointments and grocery shopping. We have no time to assimilate and prepare.

And, as we work through these latest attacks on the stability of our finances and homes and our food sources from a threat way out of our control, more menace will appear out of nowhere. (One that popped back up yesterday: The House has passed The Save Act which will require everyone to show a birth certificate that must match their legal name, or a passport, to register to vote. Every time you move to a different state in the US you need to re-register. Apparently your drivers license or Real ID will not suffice. More muddy waters. More to unpack.) We startle again. We search for an answer. We try to make sense of it. We look for a hiding place to recoup, again. We prepare to fight or flee, again. And still wipe a dirty wee face, get dressed for work and book the car in for a service.

Here is how I propose we protect our ability to trust and hope.

Make one small change. Just one for the moment. One you can absolutely control.

Find a source of peace. Allow yourself a retreat. Book yourself some gentling time. Move the pieces of your life around and block out time where you might sit in the garden. Or spend time with a book. Or go for a walk. Spend time gazing out the poets window. Read a story to a child. Close your eyes and listen to a novel. Whatever you choose, or choose them all, do this every day.

Shut the door to the world for a while and be intentional with your peaceful time.

This is not a new idea. Think: Siesta. Cocktail hour. The evening constitutional. Taking a turn around the garden alone but for a cigar. Sitting on the stoop as the sun wanes. Watching the waves. Popping into the pub for a beer after work. Taking a cup of tea to the garden. Checking the fences. A wine at the kitchen table.

As animals, we can carry a lot - stress, worry, busy minds. But we’re built to manage it, we have all the tools already, as long as we have a little daily ritual of rest. A period of peace. A pause. Balance. Intentional stillness to dissect the noise.

Balance is a key to strengthening trust and trust breeds hope. Love is harder to understand. Love is a lion. A lion with many faces. Unpredictable but warm and golden. You will love your country, but maybe not some of the elected leaders. It is sometimes an uneasy trifecta.

And here is the thing with doors. There is more than one.

Love. Trust. Hope.

This last week was a shot across our bows. Sabre rattling of the worst kind. It is a comfort to know that other big players on the world stage were able to reign in the mad king for the time being. But the damage is done. Trust has gone for many, on both sides of this situation in the US. Damaging fear is creeping in. We do not care to be made fools of.

We are all students of human behaviour. We see where this is going. We know that there will be more noise. More covering fire. More shocks. More retribution. More smoke screens. More greed.

So - dig in - find that place of rejuvenation. Feed the beast. Gird your loins. Pull tight the safety net around your community. Gather your people. Work in real spaces. Source yet another thread in the security of your food chain. Give yourself permission to take time out every day. To recover. To stay strong.

Can you do this? Where do you find your daily peace in the day. How do you nourish your trust and hope.

Trust is essential to motion. Trust that each step will find the floor. Trust that your garden will grow. Trust yourself. Trust hope.

Take care and Talk soon.

Celi

Listen to The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery. Read by me. My offer to you as time out of the melee. Each segment is around thirty minutes - give or take a few!