All that hate and greed need to triumph is for love to lack the courage to confront them.

To quote Amy Howe’s piece, “In historic decision, Court strikes down state bans on same-sex marriage.”  As someone who has a deep respect and gratitude for all the ways love is expressed in this world, this means a lot to me.

I remember watching the progress of this struggle a few years ago, when cautious voices were asking people to slow down on this issue, and not push the matter too quickly. I understood their fear, that the wrong case would go before the wrong court, and there would be a heavy blow dealt to equality just because people tried to move too fast.

So I don’t mean to say that those who are cautious are cowardly. However, those who stand up in the face of opposition from within and without, driven forward by the pounding in their heart — they most certainly are courageous. I recognized the dangers, as it’s pretty evident what happens to people who buck against long-held “traditions”. But I felt the courageous way was the only way forward.

I sincerely believe that love is the powerful force we need to resolve the obstacles that remain before us. But love alone won’t effect those solutions; we each must do our part to speak and act with love in all the ways we feel moved to do so. It takes courage. It takes patience. It takes kindness for others and with ourselves. But as much as we need love, love needs us to flow through this beautiful world of ours.

Please, keep an ear toward the beating of your own heart, and allow it to guide you along the path it needs to travel with you. It will guide you true, and together you will make your corner of our planet a brighter place to be.

Note: The title of this post is taken from Galifesto. It’s currently available for pre-order; contact me if interested in a review copy.

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Speak out in support of justice, but do so with lovingkindness toward those you feel behave unjustly.

I want to take just a moment to mention “those people”.

You know whom I mean.

They just don’t seem to be able to learn, do they?

And yet, aren’t they also walking their own path through this human existence? Aren’t they facing their own challenges, struggling with their own ways of overcoming that gnawing feeling inside that something isn’t quite right? Don’t they share our same potential for realizing the essential nature of humanity as simply beautiful expressions of earthly experience?

In my perspective, this makes “those people” vital members of “our family”, who are just as essential to the growth of this planet as I. There are ways I wish they’d walk their paths differently, but I must accept they feel the same way about me. In fact, I often feel the same way about me. I don’t feel qualified to judge, only to practice patient forgiveness with what frustrates me about them… and then also with myself for my own frustrations.

All I can do is love them through their struggles, and support them in their moments of pure growth. That’s what family is for.

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It’s only a week into November, and already I have six new things to be thankful for.

Things I’m thankful for:

1. Massachusetts has elected their first female senator, Elizabeth Warren
2. Thanks to Wisconsin, the United States of America has elected our first openly gay senator, Tammy Baldwin, who is also Wisconsin’s first female senator
3. Maine and Maryland are the first states to affirm by popular vote the right of two people to marry whom they loved, regardless of gender
4. Minnesota is the first state to reject by popular vote an attempt to deny that right as an amendment to the state constitution
5. Colorado and Washington are the first states to legalize marijuana with strict regulations, taking us one step closer toward ending the failed War on Drugs and gutting the support pillars of the deadly Mexican cartels
6. Maryland also upheld a law allowing in-state college tuition for children whose in-state high school attendance and parents’ in-state tax-paying qualifications, even if they weren’t documented immigrants

There’s so much more, to be sure, but these are my top six right now.  I have a very positive and loving view of human nature, and a faith in one another that’s reaffirmed by trends such as these.  The more we’re getting to know the stories of the diverse people around us, the more we’re coming together.

That’s all I have time for, but wanted to share.  Take care!

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When Atlas Shirked – Free eBook about Politics, Community, Love and Faith

When Atlas Shirked, by Nynia Chance

In honor of #MayDay, I have managed to get my new novel available in eBook form for free! In When Atlas Shirked, a dystopian Christian America uses love and fairness to forge peaceful community solutions to political & class warfare.

The novel is part Orwell, part #Occupy, part Christlike-Christian, and all Hope. It’s the antidote to the selfish and cruel version of atheism* of Atlas Shrugged, as it explores the powerful force of a community combining forces to defeat the poverty and isolation that had overtaken their alternate America. In comparison to Ayn Rand’s infamous novel, I like to say it’s All the Politics, Half the Page-Count, and a Hundred Times the Heart.

*Note: This novel is not anti-atheist, it’s anti-bigotry, anti-hate, and anti-malice. It explores the concepts of equality, Women’s Rights, Gay Rights and Social Justice through the experiences and evolving Biblical understanding of a young Christian woman. Others’ views have a voice in her story as well, showing that there is also another side to Faith or even simply reasoned Philosophy. Take a look. You might be surprised.

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