The Conversation

“All Mother, I’m sorry to disturb you.”

“It is no disturbance to see you again. I sensed you down the hall.

Come in—fear not. Sit, and speak to me of what’s on your mind, my son.”

“As you already know, I have welcomed a new life into the world below.

He is my first-born—pink and loud and helpless—and I find myself overcome with feeling. Sensations I’ve never known before. Not in battle, nor in preparation for battle. I’ve only felt glimpses of them, oddly enough—”

“When you were alone in the dark,” the AllMother said gently,

“thinking about the great silence and the glory of the night sky.

When the stars spoke to you in unknown languages, reminding you that you were never alone.”

“Yes, Mother All. Yes, exactly. When I look into his wrinkled little face, when I see his eyes wandering this new world, taking everything in, and when his tiny fingers grip my own with a strength I could never have imagined—I know that.”

“But there is more, isn’t there?” she asked.

“You didn’t come here to speak only of night skies.”

“There is more. I feel rage—rage at the small men who hold power in my world. At how they tear our society apart and create fear to hide their own smallness. I am enraged by it, AllMother. And I don’t know what to do with that rage. I don’t know how to carry that worry.”

“What you are feeling, my child,” she replied softly,

“is Fatherhood. You are not the first to feel this, nor will you be the last. Your beloved feels it too—magnified by the bond between mother and child, and by the roles she plays to him, to you, to me, and to the plane in which you all exist.

You have never been alone. And you are not alone now. You know this—otherwise, you would not have called out to me.”

She continued:

“I remind you that you are not only a warrior. You are a poet, a philosopher, an artist. Fatherhood weaves all of these together. How you live your life and how you face the Great Challenge are expressions of who you are.

To help you, I will return you to the traditional practices you were taught to prepare yourself before and during battle. You remember your training, yes?”

“Of course, AllMother. I practice every day.”

“Of course you do—you are a Protector of the Lands. Still, let us practice together. You and I.”

Breathing in, I know I am breathing in.

Breathing out, I know I am breathing out.

Breathing in, I know I am breathing in.

Breathing out, I know I am breathing out.

Breathing in, I am aware of my body.

Breathing out, I recognize my body is impermanent.

Breathing in, I think of Earth.

Breathing out, I recognize the planet Earth is impermanent.

Breathing in, I contemplate the human species.

Breathing out, I recognize the human species is impermanent.

Breathing in, I contemplate the governments of the world.

Breathing out, I recognize governments are impermanent.

Breathing in, I embrace the impermanence of all things.

Breathing out, I recognize that impermanence makes everything possible.

“Impermanence…”

“…gives us hope.”

“You will perform this meditation morning and night,” the AllMother said.

“It will bring you loving-kindness and mental clarity.

When fear, rage, or worry arise, remember that those burdens are mine now. Release them to me with this prayer:

Thank you, AllMother, for guiding me to see my fear through the eyes of Love.

When fear comes, I step back. I surrender. I let Love lead the way.”

“Is it truly this easy?” I asked.

“Simple does not mean easy, my child—you know this. But yes, it is this simple. It asks you to believe in something greater than yourself—something you can feel, but not see.”

“…That is the essence of faith.”

“Precisely.”

She went on:

“You remember your training. Focus on what you can control. Love yourself, your beloved, and your son when fools in power make foolish choices. Quietly help the weak when they are oppressed, remembering that we too were once strangers in a strange land.

Walk this valley even when fear threatens to consume you. Use your strength, your talents, and your art to confront power. In the darkest moments, I will be there with you—you know this.

Above all: love and create. These are the greatest acts of resistance. Love. Create.”

“I will do everything I can, AllMother. But I am only one man.”

“One person is enough, my child. You have your family and your beloved beside you. Their families too—siblings, cousins, kin of all kinds. Brothers and sisters of blood and spirit, carrying the Light of Truth into your world.

All I ask is that you do your best. I will do the rest.

Go now—in peace. Live with as much joy as you can muster.

For in times like these, joy itself is an act of resistance.”