38 Comments
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Mark Gelula's avatar

Thank you Maia. I recently gave a talk on the Five Remembrances and the research in preparation for it led me to some amazing reading not limited to the Upajjhatthana Sutta. Like you I wondered about what we are carrying with us in each moment of life and death. Like the person below my comment, my heart, too, is with you.

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Jimmy Warden's avatar

Thank you for your insights, Maia, and your vulnerability.

The phrases from the Upajjhatthana Sutta can be summarized well with this phrase:

And this too shall pass.

My heart is with you💚

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Thanks, Jimmy. My heart is with all of us! I'm thinking it can't be just me going through this ; )

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Chase Night's avatar

First time reader, instant subscriber. 2016 is the year of my life that I refer to as "the year everyone died" so this was such a beautiful reminder that the details might differ but the experience is universal.

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Sandra Pawula's avatar

Maia, You weren't through so much grief in one year, my heart is with you. Even remembering it all must be difficult. I think I must still be in the denial stage about what is happening in the U.S. I'm still hoping for a miracle.

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Elena Brower's avatar

thank you, dear Maia. you sharing your heart helps me feel at home on earth right now.

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Maia Duerr's avatar

three bows and love to you, Elena.

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Hilary Giovale's avatar

So beautiful - I resonate and can relate so much. Thank you for sharing!

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Thank you, dear Hilary!

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Kimberly Brown's avatar

May you be at peace with the changes in life. May we all be at peace with the changes in life.

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Maia Duerr's avatar

yes, may we all be at peace.

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Alexander Lovell, PhD's avatar

Maia, your words resonate so deeply. That feeling of being in the "house of grief" and navigating the different rooms – the rage, the numbness, the overwhelming sadness – is something I think many of us have experienced, especially in these past few years. It's a strange comfort, in a way, to know we're not alone in this. I appreciate your honesty about the five-year anniversary of COVID and how it's reopening those doors. It's as if our bodies and souls are holding onto these collective traumas, and they resurface when we least expect it. Your vulnerability in sharing your personal losses makes it easier for others to acknowledge their own. Thank you for creating a space where grief can be seen and felt without judgment. It's a powerful reminder that we're all walking through this life, with its joys and sorrows, together.

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Maia Duerr's avatar

I so much appreciate your words, Alexander. It really does help to know we're walking through this together, whatever may unfold.

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Elizabeth Barnesco's avatar

One of your best!!! To lose your parents and best friend in such a short time - from/during Covid - it beggars description. But I simply love these reminders, these excellent “refocus pointers”. Here in Canada, I needed to read this. Thank you!

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Swarnali Mukherjee's avatar

Maia this post is exactly the kind of force for good conversation that we need right now. If we look beyond anger and fear - all these collective discomfort is rooted in grief - for clinging too deeply to a dying way of life. But as you pointed out, we have to understand that the foundations to this grief was seeded long ago when certain people, both in America and overseas, have been wronged deeply by the federal government and policy makers for so long. There is no way to look at this but through the lens of compassion and learning from our friends who have thrived yet, through the darkest of times.

Thank you for inviting us each inside our respective house of grief that has now become our cage, and also for showing us that the way out is in the understanding that impermanence is a gift. Beautiful essay. 💜

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Maia Duerr's avatar

May it be of benefit : )

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Swarnali Mukherjee's avatar

💜

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Marjorie Pezzoli's avatar

🎼It’s the end of the world as we know it. And I feel fine…. That song has been going through my mind lately. I have many rooms in my house of grief, thank you for opening up your home to us. 🙏🏡🤍

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Housewarming, 😂

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Don Boivin's avatar

Pretty damned good bit of "gathered streams of inspiration and emotion" in my opinion. You're a pro, Maia. Really well done! Thank you for letting us into your heart. 🙏💚

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Thank you, Don. I like that I was able to include the Buddha and R.E.M. in the same essay : )

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Elizabeth Barnesco's avatar

Very cool!!!

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Don Boivin's avatar

Yeah, that’s pretty cool!

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Laurete Francescato's avatar

Thank you…. so perfectly stated. Raw , vulnerable, open heart….☺️

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Heather Plett's avatar

Thank you. This is the reminder I needed right now. Also... speaking of Indigenous wisdom on how to survive, I found this podcast helpful... https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/jesse-wente-remembering-our-future-1.7241773

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Thank you for the link to the podcast, Heather, I'll check it out. These are times when I also appreciate re-reading Robin Wall Kimmerer.

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Kim's avatar

Acceptance of things passing through comes at a high price. It wears on us and when someone is able to express it so beautifully, it helps us all. We are, after all, just walking each other home. Blessings to you. 🙏🪷

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Maia Duerr's avatar

Blessings to you, Kim.

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Kara Westerman (she/her)'s avatar

All of this. Yes.

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