Rebooting the Blog

Hi. I’m Gretel and this is Wide Blue World. I am rebooting my blog as a way to document my life and share as you are interested. Especially, I am exploring the idea of Universal Belonging. What does it mean to belong? What do we owe each other in offering and fostering belonging? What does it mean to our society to prioritize a sense of belonging? I think about Maya Angelou who took pride in belonging to herself. She said, “You are only free when you realize you belong no place, you belong every place.” She could do that because she belonged to herself first. 

I worked for the National Park Service for more than 20 years until DOGE sent me into early retirement last year, so on this channel we will visit some National Parks, state parks, and other areas of natural and cultural interest. But that’s not really what it’s about. Earlier this year, I ran for US House of Representatives, unsuccessfully. So you can expect I will talk about politics, but not primarily. I practice Zen Buddhism in the engaged tradition of Vietnamese teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. So much of my view is informed by that practice. Yet I was raised in a Protestant tradition, and I esteem the work and legacy of Dr. King and his articulation of the beloved community. I live with neurodivergency, but this is not a space that will answer any questions on that topic. I just bought a camper van so I can travel more easily and leisurely with my cats, but this is certainly not a channel about van life or childless cat ladies. 

In addition I have a self published novel about adolescent girls, secrets and mysteries, and courage. This actually brings us closer to what this channel is about. Courage is my favorite value because without courage, all our best intentions are worthless. And what I really want to talk about here is my vision of how I want the world to be. I understand my obligation on this planet as this: identify the world as I want it to exist, and then act in such ways to make it so. I would suggest that we all have this opportunity, and I have come to the conclusion that it’s worth having a conversation here, now and again, to share what I am learning, and invite you to commit to the same opportunity and obligation–to act in such ways to create the world as you want it to exist. 

In high school I had the thought that whatever I did in this life, I wanted to preach acceptance. Compared to people who are “really autistic” I can pass pretty OK. Yet compared to normal people, I’m not. So I don’t want to claim any kind of status, just to say that it opened a door into appreciating differences. The more I think about our differences, the more I see them as our superpowers. Both in the way we are talented in different ways and bring valuable perspectives, and also in this awareness that cracks us open if we let it–to see each other and to fight for each other. And for me, to frame it as belonging, and the belief that universal belonging is where my work in the world lies.  

So, Universal Belonging. Don’t expect a linear exposition. Don’t expect a lot of answers or prescriptions. I want to go meet people who are committing beautiful acts of belonging, get out into nature and learn how we can belong to ourselves, research great thinkers of our past so we don’t have to reinvent the proverbial wheel, and be a part of the conversation of not just getting past this current political nightmare, but fostering a long term vision of another way of being. 

All people of good will are welcome at my table. Love each other, don’t give up, and I’ll see you back soon.