#compassion

“What Happened to Us?”

/ Anne Dennish / Leave a comment

I’m 64 years old and after the tragedies of yesterday I sat here and wondered “when did this world change so much?” Where did all of this judgement and hatred come from? When did the world split apart into different teams? When did we lose compassion and empathy for our fellow human beings?

On September 11th, 2001, all of our differences were put aside and we all stood together. Neighbors met in the street to console one another, children stood on their streets holding up the flag and signs that said “honk for America.” On that day there was no race, color, religion or political differences. No one cared what your job was, or your financial status or what you believed in. We all stood together as one, consoling one another and standing in love, kindness and compassion for each other and for a world that was terrorized on that day.

What happened to that? What has happened to the people of this world? Did anyone deserve to die on 9/11? No, so why did someone deserve to die yesterday at the hands of someone else, or why does anyone deserve to die at all by someone else?

There is no one person or particular situation that changed this country or the people in it. WE are in control of the way we act and react. We have a choice to sit in judgement and spread hate to the people whose beliefs we don’t agree with OR we can choose to accept that we’re all different and that it’s not our job to judge someone just because they don’t believe what we do. 

I believe that the problem is that we don’t hold OURSELVES accountable. We blame. We blame whoever and whatever we can. You need to hold YOURSELF accountable for what you put out into this world. Look in the mirror and ask yourself: “Am I trying to make this world and country a better place or is my judgment of others clouded by anger, fear and hatred?” 

Is it so hard to accept that we’re all different? Is it so hard to let others be different? Or is it easier to judge and hate? In my 64 years I have never seen judgement or hate change anything. I have been witness many times to what love, compassion, empathy and acceptance can change and I’ve seen it change things for the good.

We, as a people, can move mountains and achieve greatness but it begins with each one of us. 

Today is a day to pray for all of us and decide that it’s time for change. Today is a day to remember what happened on this day 24 years ago and to remember how healing it was when we all stood together as one.

Let today be the ending of hatred and judgement and the beginning of acceptance, compassion and changing the world “together.”

Wishing you love, light and peace,

~Anne Dennish~

“Tragedies That Remind Us What Matters”

/ Anne Dennish / Leave a comment

In the past two weeks alone, tragic floods have swept across places we love – devastating Central Texas, overwhelming Plainfield, New Jersey and turning everyday streets into waterscapes in New York City and beyond. Lives have been lost, homes destroyed and families left shaken.

In times like these it’s easy to feel helpless, not knowing what to do or how to help, but here’s what I’ve learned: we are a tapestry woven by shared stories of loss, grief and the necessity to reach out. 

These tragedies are more than weather events – they are reminders. Tragedy shouldn’t be the only reason that we step closer to one another. What if we gathered together and put our differences aside before the storms? What if kindness, empathy and understanding weren’t reserved for emergencies or tragedies, but simply became our everyday way of living?

Let today be a reminder to reach out to someone who lives alone, send a message of thanks to your community first responders or simply share your umbrella with someone who needs it without being asked. 

Every act of kindness matters, whether that’s a comforting meal, a check-in call, or donating to local relief.

Unity doesn’t and shouldn’t just begin in disaster. It grows every single time that we choose to show up. Let tragedy remind us of who we are. 

We are human beings who hurt together, heal together and hold each other always, not just when the skies open up.

Let’s build our bridges together as human beings now, not just in floods. 

Wishing you love and light,

~Anne Dennish~

“Actions Make The Words True”

/ Anne Dennish / Leave a comment

Often times we take things for granted. We assume that the people we love know how we feel about them or how much we appreciate them. We assume that they know when we’re upset or that something they do bothers us. We assume that saying the words to them is enough…but it isn’t.

Assumptions. Nothing good ever comes out of them. It’s a breeding ground for misunderstanding, arguments and hurt feelings.

Words, on the other hand, can make a difference. Words communicate how we’re feeling to someone and  can prevent misunderstanding, arguments and hurt feelings.

Yet there’s something important about those words: you need  the actions to back them up because it’s those actions that make them true to the person you said them to.

Be mindful. Be compassionate. Be kind. Be understanding. Be willing to listen with an open heart and mind.

And be those things to the people you love.

And they’ll be all those things to you.

And never miss an opportunity to not only tell someone how you feel about them, but show them!

It’s a good thing.

Wishing you love and light,

~Anne Dennish~