Energy work, meditation, art and many other elements in that world can be construed as airy fairy. But I recently watched The Forgiven, starring Forest Whitaker as Archbishop Desmond Tutu. When the Archbishop was working on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a body formed for restorative justice to help South Africa recover from apartheid, he spoke eloquently and emphatically about the power of forgiveness and the aspects of beauty and spirituality in our world. Here’s one thought from him:

We were made to enjoy music, to enjoy beautiful sunsets, to enjoy looking at the billows of the sea and to be thrilled with a rose that is bedecked with dew… Human beings are actually created for the transcendent, for the sublime, for the beautiful, for the truthful… and all of us are given the task of trying to make this world a little more hospitable to these beautiful things.

The to-do lists, the protests, writing letters to the congressperson, cleaning the house—all of these are vitally important. But even more important is the energy that goes into each activity.

Forgiveness, shining light, sharing a smile, loving does so much. Mostly it does something to us, and we can then be a more beneficial presence in the world…which is what we’re here to be.

A dear friend of mine founded Forgiveness Day, which takes place on the first Sunday of August and celebrates heroes of forgiveness. Some notable heroes include Marianne Williamson, Chief Arvol Looking Horse, Aba Gayle (who forgave the man who murdered her daughter).

One hero I met was Melba Beals, one of the Little Rock Nine. She mentioned in her speech that one of her former tormenters apologized and then asked if he could go out to lunch with her. She did tell us, which I appreciated hearing, that while you can forgive, we don’t necessarily have to go to lunch with the person!

I’ve meditated and done energy work and light work for years. I took energy-work classes from renowned energy teacher and author Nicky Skully, starting in 1987—yes, the year of the Harmonic Convergence. It’s been quite a ride since then. In the class when I first felt that radiant energy shooting out of my hands, that was the first time I really knew that we’re more than just these 3D bodies we lug around. Recently I did energy work on a friend, who said that my energy was stronger than any Reiki master he’s studied with…because I use it all the time.

For the longest time, though, the most powerful meditation I’ve ever done in my life was the four lines in the picture above:

•               Breathe in love
•               Breathe out light
•               Breathe in light
•               Breathe out love

And repeat and repeat and….

Try it—even just for a couple of minutes…you’ll be amazed. Picture and feel the love and light going into and out of your heart. Powerful! Nothing will be the same afterwards.

Here’s another thought from Desmond Tutu:

We are made for goodness. We are made for love. We are made for friendliness. We are made for togetherness. We are made for all of the beautiful things that you and I know. We are made to tell the world that there are no outsiders. All are welcome: black, white, red, yellow, rich, poor, educated, not educated, male, female, gay, straight, all, all, all. We all belong to this family, this human family….