Look for the Helpers: Finding a Compass in the Chaos, Today

Organizations to support, mentioned in this conversation:

• Glia: providing medical care and supplies in Gaza

• Project HOPE: providing midwifery care and nutrition in Gaza

Audio:

Transcript:

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Hi Leilani.

Leilani Wong Navar: Hey Lydia. Good to be with you.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Thanks for hopping on this mic with me last minute, because we had some things we needed to talk about.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah. Always here for the conversation.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: It's a big week and you were just talking about how our collaborator, Jen Myzel, had pointed out how, you know, we had recorded this interview two weeks ago about LGBTQ+ rights and what's happening and how it's already like, oh my God, there's something even more pressing, even though it's, they're all, it's all really pressing at the same time.

Leilani Wong Navar: And it's all happening at once, it's all happening in real people's lives, but the headlines and what feels most urgent keeps changing, and there's a feeling of chaos in the news.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: So, yeah. I think part of our task right now is to pay attention and stay, figure out how we stay oriented to all the things that matter to us.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: Even as the headlines keep changing fast.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah. And many people say chaos is the strategy, you know, of this administration in the United States. So here we are. It's June 11th. It's June 11th. We've had this kind of commandeering and bringing in of the military and the National Guard in Southern California, in response to the protestors that are rising against the unlawful kidnapping of immigrants that are undocumented and not criminals, right?

Leilani Wong Navar: Right.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: And we have this No Kings Day on Saturday. And I think, you know, I keep having this phrase that's going through my head. I just keep saying, “The unraveling be unraveling.”

You know, in the Work that Reconnects, in Joanna Macy's work, one of the stories of our time that we talk about is the great unraveling, the unraveling of the systems that support life. And how that's happening right alongside the great turning, the reparative mechanism of the earth rising up through humans to repair and fight for life on her body. And how it's not that we know which one's gonna win out, right, but we see that they're kind of happening alongside each other.

Leilani Wong Navar: Mm-hmm.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: And I think there's this part of me, right, that is like, well, what did we - you know, as the great turning quickens, so does the great unraveling. They kind of inspire each other. The great unraveling inspiring the great turning. And I think it just felt important to hop on here and be like, yeah. Coming from all directions. That's a real thing.

Leilani Wong Navar: Mm-hmm.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: You know, I feel it in my system where there's like a, a quickening. A quickening of the unraveling of systems, the acceleration of - I think something that a lot of us are witnessing right now is this blatant, right in front of our eyes, human cruelty, right?

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Whether it's what's happening to the people of Gaza, whether it's people trying to talk about what's happening between communities, whether it's the way that the, I don't even wanna say his name, but you know who I'm talking about, talks about people. There's this kind of witnessing of this side of humanity that's quite cruel.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: And so, what's our response to that? I went and I saw this woman who's been to Gaza three times speak a few days ago. I should look up her name, we'll put it with this post [pediatric nurse, Sandra Adler Killen].

She has been to Gaza three times as a medical worker, working specifically with newborn babies and new moms. And she is a lactation consultant. And, you know, I was really inspired by her in her presence because she was - is - is this incredible example of a strong spine and a compassionate heart. And I feel like that's the muscle of humanity that we are being asked to conjure and step into in response to human cruelty.

You know, it troubles us. It even deflates us. And I almost feel like there has to be this - you know, some people talk about it like “warrior spirit,” “warrior training.” I was talking to my friend Lyla June last night. I hear it in the way that she speaks, that there's this muscle, this archetype that we kind of shape ourselves into, of: what is it, in the face of people or mob mentality that would dehumanize, to grow into humanity as a strength and keeping it centered as a strength and a compass.

And so I think if there's anyone who's overwhelmed to the point of freeze or to the point of panic, I would invite us into that stance. You know, try that on. Try on the capacity to be unafraid of our pain for the world, to honor our grief, anger, rage, and even questioning our power. Yeah, of course. I think that that is a very understandable reaction. And how right alongside that, how can we come into this stance of strong spine, boundless heart. I will do my best in the midst of whatever conversation and moment we're in, to be a response to cruelty by standing strong in humanity, by standing strong in compassionate vigilance. By standing strong in, you know, boundaries around when I sense, or when I see that the logic that's being used is to strip someone of their humanity, either by racism, by sexism, by homophobia, by whatever it is.

And I think that's just something I really wanted to like say I needed to say out loud today.

Leilani Wong Navar: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah. And I think that we're all giving birth right now to what that looks like.

You know, there's, there's inspirations for it. There's people that we've looked to, you know, I'm thinking of Maya Angelou. I'm thinking of Martin Luther King Jr. I'm thinking of Greta Thunberg. I'm thinking of all of these people that I think we want to watch and listen to their words, because they summon us. They get us right, right? And that that is still close to home.

Let that be a homecoming in the same way that coming home to the body of earth is a homecoming, when we've been severed from it for generations. Let coming home to that capacity we have within us to be vigilant in the liberation of life, of right to life, of love, and to say no to cruelty, to say no to the hard edge of the sword, and to shape that in a way where we're like, I can stand inside of a way of being that feels like the world that I'm asking to shape.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah, I'm feeling into that in my body. That strong spine and open heart stance that you're talking about.

And as you say that I'm also, I feeling the unsteadiness that can come when the narratives get tricky. You know, where it's like we were talking earlier about what's black and white, you know, and how tempting it is to have a black and white and like, now I'm standing on the side of what I believe in, and this other thing is what I am against, you know? But the narratives and the debates get complex and we can get swept up in one or the other.

And so I'm feeling into that image of homecoming to like, okay, even in this moment, what is it like to have my strong spine? And my open heart? And is it okay with the strong spine and an open heart to also say, “I don't know if I understand what is the best solution to this situation.” Like, I don't need to take the easy route of, making a black and white, right and wrong, and here's the enemy, and here's what I stand against, kind of move. Sometimes there is, like you're saying, just say no to this.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah, for sure. Yeah, there's a vigilance that I think is to be called upon sometimes, but also we're in this very interesting time with social media and stuff where like opinion is power.

And it's like, I think that it is supportive to be like, yeah, I don't know what it's like to be there. Like for instance, an example of this is, so I did two 10-day stints of hurricane relief with Hurricane Helene. And the first time that I was there was six days after the hurricane had passed. So it was pretty, you know, and I was, I was deep in it. I was organizing. My role that I fell into that was the most useful was supply runs and organizing supply runs from in outside of town to inside of town and getting supplies to people. And so I was inside what was happening, and then when I, after the 10 days were done and I left the inside and went to the outside, I was amazed at the stories that were being told. Right? And how inaccurate some of them were about what was happening inside.

And so that's where I think opinion goes awry. When we have these, like, you know, for instance, when it comes to what's happening inside of Gaza and relationship with the Israeli military. My information point now that I'm gonna stick to for a while is just people who are there. Is direct stories, direct information from people who are there. And I wanna caution us from thinking that we know, because there's so much dialogue that's happening, especially online, outside of the place itself and what people are actually going through.

And it's not to say that there can't be accurate representation, but I think that we, I think that just a lot of time we think we know, and just like you're saying, we might know some things, but it's good to come to the table, you know, like for instance, instance with this, deportation issue that we're having in this country. What if our instincts were, “Oh, there's people who have been working on this for decades and they actually know best how to keep people safe and protect people.” And the tension of that versus just kind of mass response, and what we fall into.

We on a mass level do need to respond, but understanding that that's not the only response that we have access to and that there's people who know better than us on most issues. Because we have become knowledgeable about the certain subset of issues that we're close to. There are things that I know about. I know how to help people with their pain for the world. I know how to help liberate a burnt-out heart. I know how to help rehabilitate communities that have, you know, been responding to things for a long time. That's something that I have spent a lot of time close to and worked with a lot of people inside. Right?

But can I humble myself to be like, you know what? I don't know how to protect our undocumented communities, but I know how to find the people who do, and I'm gonna listen to what they're asking of me. If I want to care about this right now. If I feel, wow, this is really important this week and I wanna know how to act as I also track the way that, you know, the importance of large scale response and march and, and all of those kinds of things.

Leilani Wong Navar: Right. That was very much on my mind. I mean, I'm just south of LA here. There's also places where I am in Orange County where, there's been, you know, militarization here and I have been taking some heart in knowing that there's a lot that's not on the news. There's a lot of peaceful protest going on. People singing together. You know what this looks like. And a lot of it is not violent.

Knowing that that's not making the news, but also other things that are purposefully not happening in public because they are what actually protect people and help people who are in need of that, right? And I'm glad that we're not seeing that publicized, because it needs to happen more quietly.

So the companionship of that quiet work and the big noise that gets made that says, Hey, a lot of people care about this. I also take heart in that. I also take heart in seeing how many people are willing to say, “I really care about this. It's not okay with me that people are being treated with cruelty. There's nothing that can make a human being not deserve dignity, respect, housing. There's nothing. I don't believe you.”

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Not to be separated from their families. A 4-year-old girl. What'd does she do? Are you kidding me?

Leilani Wong Navar: Are you kidding me?

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Are you kidding me?

Leilani Wong Navar: I don't wanna lose that. Sometimes I start to watch this unraveling and I'm like, yep, this is what's happening. But I don't wanna lose that, “Are you kidding me?”

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah. Like hard stop, like serious questions, you know. What led to to that being able to happen? And being able to be like, cool, I'm, that's a hard no for me.

Leilani Wong Navar: That's a hard no.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: You know? Yeah.

Leilani Wong Navar: And like the woman you listened to who's been to Gaza, you know, talking about what pregnant women and newborns and new moms are going through, that's a hard no.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: That's a hard no for me. Exactly. Yeah. That there's no clean water.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: No clean water. That their medications are highly, you know, compromised, that now the hospitals are overrun with people on IVs because that's the only way they can survive, because they don't have food. That's a hard no.

And so, you know, and then people say, what do we do? It seems like the best thing we can do for those folks right now is to try and fundraise and get money to the organizations that are on the ground there. The one this woman was working with is called Glia. I don't remember what it stands for, but they help mothers and babies.

Leilani Wong Navar: I've been reading about Project HOPE as well, and they have a team of midwives. They're providing nutrition, as they can - I mean, it's not abundantly available - but to young children. And they're in desperate need of funding now because of the situation with aid money.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah.

Leilani Wong Navar: So, yeah, we can include those links. The powerlessness that you're talking about, like we don't have a lot of power, you and I, from where we're sitting right now, to influence, to stop the horrors that are happening over there. I believe in our connected ecological power, but also I sit with a lot of powerlessness when I hear that.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: And I also quickly ask, well what can I do? There's people asking for help. There's people who want help from someone like me.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Who know.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yes.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: That's the thing, is realizing inside of powerlessness that there's an antidote of intentional action, of “okay, I don't know, but I'm gonna find someone who does and I'm gonna see what they're kind of advocating for and asking for.”

And I think that's a good move to try on in a moment of powerlessness. Even as you feel that, and you bring it along with you and be like, I understand why we feel powerless because we're far away. We haven't been able to stop, you know, the militarization. We, you know, Trump getting elected was a huge defeat.

You know, when it came to, to what's happening there and what's happening in this country and inside of all of that, can we continue to fall into the homecoming of loving life? And that means that you fight for it, you know? And that in this time, at least in our world, it seems that loving life is integrating with fighting for life. Like that's part of the adventure of this time that Joanna Macy talks about, you know, the adventure of being alive.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yes. With uncertain outcome. That's what makes an adventure.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah. Yeah. We don't know.

Leilani Wong Navar: And I guess I just wanna widen that even that loving life is protecting, fighting for it, as well as caring for and tending it. And also, part of this fierce, upright spine for me is, I'm not fighting other people on behalf of life. I'm fighting violent ideologies. I'm fighting institutionalized hatred and racism. I'm fighting greed. Imperialism. There's a lot of things, you know, but for me, part of centering humanity is not dehumanizing anybody, even the ones who are doing things that are harmful. Especially because there's a lot of narratives out there that try to convince me somebody is harmful, and then you find out, you dig a little deeper, and it's more complex than that, right? I mean, there's a whole narrative I don't think either of us listen to very much, but how undocumented immigrants are are dangerous, right?

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm. Yeah. That's the thing. It's the same way how Middle Eastern people you slap on the identity of terrorists, and now you can do whatever you want to them. Just blanket it. Just blanket it with fear and violence.

Leilani Wong Navar: And the population of Israel is diverse in what they believe in and stand for. And many are standing and fighting for peace. I mean, to not lump people together, to not stand by while anyone is dehumanized, is part of that fighting for life for me. And letting things be, you know, chaotic on the surface. Like we were talking about. There's all this chaos and debate and blaming and finger pointing going on. And I don't actually have to swim in that.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: And also, what's it doing? How many of the arguments on social media are actually protecting the people that need to be protected? Not that many. And so I also see it almost in this utilitarian way where I'm just like, my focus has been in getting resources to the people who don't have them. That's it. You know, I'm not interested in having an argument with anyone about it.

It's a thing that I think we fall into where we think our opinion just matters so much, you know, and I'm just like, no, what matters is getting clean water to newborn babies and mothers and like, we can argue about it later, but I feel really clear. You know, what matters is making sure that no more Jewish couples are shot in the street.

Leilani Wong Navar: Right.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: What matters is making sure that Palestinian people in Gaza are not erased. They're in danger of erasure. They are in danger of erasure.

So getting kind of clear on what I want to spend my energy in and on, and I do think that inside of the chaos, right, this chaos that's happening, there's a freedom inside that kind of intentionality, you know, or a clarity that can help. There's a steering on the ship of my own personal, where I'm going and what I'm doing in my life that I think can be helpful. That kind of like intentionality.

Leilani Wong Navar: It takes that backbone and that heart to stay focused on what matters.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: What matters to you.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah. And then to do what you can and, and to sit with that it's not enough. You know, that feeling of like, yeah, but this doesn't solve the problem. That's one thing we have to walk with, is that we're in process. We're doing what we can and it's an ongoing thing.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: There's a trajectory to this thing.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yep.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: I wish I could wake up and it's all just solved, but that's not the situation I'm in. It requires my sustained participation.

Leilani Wong Navar: That's right.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: You know, so when I get to the end of my life, what do I wanna look back and see that I stayed close to? My and other people's humanity. You know, that's, that sounds good to me. Yeah.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah.

Leilani Wong Navar: I wanna stay close to this stream that's been going for some billions of years that's in support of life continuing on planet earth and flourishing.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: That I got in and participated in that stream, in making ongoing life and flourishing continue to be possible.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: Yeah.

So up next, links for Project HOPE and Glia, and other places that we can participate in this good, good work.

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Yeah. And at the end of the day, you and I, we're just doing our best too, you know. We lay down things that we hope are helpful. I am not saying that I'm perfect or whole in what I'm doing, but I am gonna continue to just humbly try and do my best and put things out there that I hope can be helpful.

Leilani Wong Navar: That's a guiding question: can this be helpful?

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Mm-hmm.

Leilani Wong Navar: Can this be truly helpful?

Lydia Violet Harutoonian: Love you.

Leilani Wong Navar: Love you.