by Doe West
As we gear up for 2025
(and yes, as a member of a Peace action lifestyle and group, I feel the need to gear up),
I find myself remembering steps I took when I was facing my first solo apartment.
To afford that first apartment, and afford that first course in a community college, I had to hold multiple jobs.
These included the midnight shift at a 24-hour diner.
Evading hands on the job was a skill I already had from years of such work in my small town.
But now it was a city.
And I did not know these people or feel assured in evading these hands – much less the intentions behind them.
So, I found a self defense class at a local Y.
I went in that first night focused on becoming a warrior!
And stood agog as the instructor said, “First, you learn how to fall.”
Wait, what?!
I took a breath and focused on listening vs. reacting (a skill I honed and now teach to students and clients as well as live under the protection of)
First, you learn how to fall.
NOT fail – fall.
Mindfully
Not just carefully, but skillfully.
I came to repeat a mantra silently as I built that skill of nonviolence.
Fall – Roll – Rise.
The antithesis of weakness.
Fall.
Roll.
Rise.
RISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May we all learn this skill anew and rise in unity to overcome the challenges of 2025.