I am not a person of faith⁠—I am an atheist.   But these days I am trying to find comfort in the following prayer:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.

Alcoholics, soldiers, the sad, the scared, the tired⁠—and I ⁠—have found solace in this verse. It is unclear who wrote it (it is not from the Bible), but it has been widely circulated since the 1940’s.

This week we have watched the pandemic death toll climb over 100,000; watched the horror of George Floyd’s final moments at the hands of police in Minneapolis; watched the riots and fires and teargassed protesters. The country⁠—the world⁠—is a sad, frustrating, unfair, unhealthy home for us. 

In my home, I am trying to have the courage to change what I can.  I can speak out against injustice on social media; I can donate to worthy causes; I can offer support and solidarity to the disenfranchised and unprivileged; I can wear my mask and social distance when I am in public.

I hope we can all find some courage and some wisdom in these times…