For tens of years I have intentionally ignored news because it just ends up riling me up and making me feel scared and sometimes angry. I always went with the phrase, “if it gets bad enough, they’ll come tell me.”

I saw a post the other day about how I don’t know what black people have gone through or are going through now. That’s certainly true.

Humans can have empathy for each other, but until we have lived through the same experiences, it’s hard to know what it’s really like.

What is it like to be suffocated to death with a knee in the back of the neck? I don’t know, but I imagine it is pretty fucking horrible.

And even without watching any of the videos, I dare say the officer should have known that he was doing something pretty fucking horrible.

How the fuck did this happen?

In my men’s circles, I often invite men to breathe. “Become aware of your breathing in this moment. Allow your body to breathe itself as you imagine pure clean energy coming up from the earth and filling your body.”

This works well in many situations.

• Feeling anger? breathe. Transmute the anger into action.
• Feeling joy? breathe. Experience this moment to its fullest.
• Feeling fear? breathe. Allow your brain some oxygen and space to figure out what to do next.
• Etc.

Try breathing. Breathing works wonders.

…

George Floyd was denied the right to breathe.

Wait, what?

George Floyd was denied the right to breathe!!!

I said

GEORGE FLOYD WAS DENIED THE RIGHT TO BREATHE!!

I have seen #icantbreathe hashtags so just like “don’t taze me bro” I guess George Floyd was saying “I can’t breathe” to the people around him… People. around him. Humans, who I believe can have empathy.

A knee intentionally crushing someone’s windpipe into the ground is pretty much the opposite of human empathy. It’s horrifying to imagine “I can’t breathe” were George Floyd’s last words on earth.

So what to do?

Breathe. Give your brain and body oxygen to transmute your feelings into awareness and knowledge of what’s next.

After you breathe, let your new awareness move you courageously forward into action.

Use your empathy to stand up for human rights in whatever ways suit your situation.

Write. Call. Join. Leave. Invite. Ask. Speak. Share. Meditate. Pray. Post. Breathe. We are all connected and all playing a part.

Black Lives Matter.

23:49 Saturday 06 June 2020 JST

Plot Twist (jump right to 1:54:18 for George Floyd info):

Props #youngpharaoh