A Walk in the Park For Abortion
On getting involved in a cause, and dahlia gazing.
Dear Beautiful Friends,
Last weekend I took a 90-minute stroll with old friends and new friends as part of Access Walk Seattle. All the funds will go to provide safe abortion services to women traveling from out of state.
Abortion rights are not just women’s rights, they’re human rights. All of our bodies, and the care of them, especially when that care relates to creating a new human life then tending to it, nurturing it, feeding it, educating it, on and on—and the consequences of NOT being able to tend, nurture, feed, care for, educate, raise, etc—this affects all our communities. And that’s just the very tip of the issue.
(If you’re interested and want to register for next summer, or learn more, check out Access Walk here.)
If you, like me, want to get involved with a cause close to your heart; if you think about being part of the solution rather than a nervous-system quake of emotions standing on the sidelines (this was me)—but you’re overwhelmed with WHERE TO START, try this:
The next time a friend or loved one asks you to get involved with an event or fundraiser that you care about—and it’s an activity you like—Say Yes. I always have 100 “good” reasons (all of them bullshit) to not get involved, usually all along the lines of committment-is-scary. An un-beautiful habit, really. Withdrawal is not a way to exalt the senses and expand the mind and spirit, at least for this human.
Last week we went to a Pink concert. This week, let’s go on a walk in the drizzle, and get up close and personal with some dahlias.
Below, the “starting line” at Access Walk Seattle, with an Ovary Fairy Godmother sending us off in style. I’m with my friend Jeanette, who I met on the first day of college, and we’ve been best friends ever since.
Two people joined me on Team Sussex. Jeanette, and my sporty-spice “cocky bitch” friend, Jan. I met Jan at my first Masters swim team 21 years ago. The two of us road tripped to a lot of triathlons, bike rides and other training weekends around WA state. One night before an event I was super nervous about, she read me a story as I curled up on the couch in the middle of a party (some of the group were absolutely not nervous). Jan has the nickname “Cocky Bitch” due to her athletic prowess.
Introducing friends is one of my favorite things—and I forget how much I love it until it happens. I learn/re-learn life details I’d either forgotten or perhaps never even knew. Jan’s dad fought in THREE wars: WWII, Vietnam, and Korea. Can you imagine? Jeanette’s dad: Korea and Vietnam. Mine: training for WWII, then off to college.
We walked off-course to check out Volunteer Park’s sublime dahlia garden.
Here are some blooms who’d like to meet you:
Thank you for being part of the Beauty Hunter community. Our aim here is to turn toward Beauty (however you define it) in daily life, and consider beauty’s unconditional nature, even (especially) during troubled times. What if this was the purpose of life?
I have some fun, creative, community offerings coming up this fall and winter, for paid members—including Zoom Creative Hours for anyone who wants a space to do their writing/art/projects in the company of others, and get a little bit of inspo along the way.
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End-of-official-summer subscription special. Buy a year’s membership and get $24 off for as long as you subscribe. xo
If you’ve tried all the tricks, jumped through all the hoops, and clenched out so much discipline that your jaw still hurts, HERE’S SOMETHING NEW:
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