I was in Manhattan last week to meet with the Ad Council (of Rosie the Riveter and Smokey the Bear fame), United Jewish Appeal, and the Jed Foundation. As I walked the streets, one building seemed to jump out at me, the Grace building. The letters loomed large, G R A C E.
My sister, Maya, and I talk about grace often, its power to transform, and how it has come in and out of our lives. Beyond simple elegance, Maya will speak of grace as the free intervention of the divine as expressed in spiritual salvation. I see it in daily acts of loving, as in the extension of goodwill from one to another in the face of human frailty. In both, it is a powerful blessing freely given.
My business of the week in the city was the Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders. Grace is central to seeing the beauty in every brain, including my own, so the sign drove its message deep each time I passed.
Does the universe speak to you? Do you see reminders that help you on your way when you look around? I keep an eye out for these guideposts and ride the uplifting joy they provide.
“Courage is grace under pressure.” – Ernest Hemingway
