I’ve been reminding myself of the research that shows how bad loneliness and isolation are and how what matters is our sense of connection with others.

http://ccare.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ConnectToThrive11.jpg

I ended up shoulding on myself. I should get out more and be with people and so on, but in this body being with people makes me feel more separate than if I just think about them in the abstract. The kind promise is: to build, nurture and celebrate connections. It says nothing about quantity or frequency or even species.

The reason for the word “kind” is to avoid just the kind of violence brought on by shoulds.

begin with the breath
in and out
you and the robin and the grass
all breathing
in and out
you and the president and
the protesters and the refugees
all breathing
all of us
on this spinning blue marble
connected