News from Paradise --
I just phoned Trisha, a Net of Light group leader who lives very near the town of Paradise, California, that burned to the ground. I knew she had been evacuated and was worried about her. She thanked me for my concern and then said, "I'm up here doing my job. I'm spreading light, being a ray of sun for these people here. Everyone is so down and afraid so I'm holding the power of the light steady for them. I just can't go into that gloom and doom stuff -- not now. I'm going around spreading light wherever I am and when people say, "How can you be so happy at a time like this?" I tell them, "Well, look at the good it's bringing out in everyone. Look at us! Look at all these wonderful people reaching out to one another. We have a lot to be grateful for and I'm just glad to be here to help.
I couldn't help but marvel at her response to a tragedy of this magnitude and when I said that to her, she said, "Well, I'm surprised at myself. I didn't know I could feel like this but the Net of Light has just lifted me up. And at this point I couldn't do anything different. I'm steady, I'm happy and I'm just here to hold the light."
She's driving people who don't have cars from place to place, taking food to workers and responders, and basically leaving a trail of love and gratitude wherever she goes. Tonight there's a Grandmothers' Net of Light meeting at her home in Chico and women who survived the fire will be there, sharing how they dealt with the firestorm and how they worked with the Net of Light to help themselves, their families and the area around Paradise. I asked that someone please take notes at this meeting so all of us can learn from these deeply spiritual women who've truly been in the trenches 'under fire.'
More to follow.
