The Quiet Power of Resistance

Living Authentically in a Turbulent World

Resistance doesn’t always come with banners and loud declarations. Sometimes, it exists in the small, deliberate acts of choosing health, authenticity, mindfulness, and creativity. Quiet resistance can look like living with intention, refusing to engage in negativity, and embracing joy as a form of defiance against a culture of burnout and disconnection.

In a world that often glorifies spectacle, quiet resistance is an act of radical self-possession. Here’s how four inspiring individuals, two women and two men, exemplify the power of living authentically, supporting one another, and appreciating life’s simple joys.

1. Zora Neale Hurston

Author, anthropologist, and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston resisted the societal expectations of her era by living unapologetically as herself. While the Harlem Renaissance celebrated the brilliance of Black artistry, Hurston often stood apart from her peers by writing stories that centered rural Southern Black life with joy and complexity, rather than despair. Her masterpiece, Their Eyes Were Watching God, celebrates individuality and self-discovery. Hurston's quiet resistance lay in her refusal to conform to literary or societal norms, trusting her inner knowing to create work that would later be heralded as revolutionary.

2. Ruth Bader Ginsburg

The late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg exemplified quiet resistance throughout her legal career. Ginsburg’s strength lay in her meticulous, calculated approach to dismantling gender discrimination. She chose her cases carefully, crafting arguments that built a solid foundation for change over time. Outside the courtroom, Ginsburg embraced joy, from her love of opera to her steadfast friendships, including one with fellow Justice Antonin Scalia, despite their ideological differences. Her life reminds us that persistence, thoughtfulness, and finding joy in unexpected places are forms of resistance that change the world.

3. Fred Rogers

Fred Rogers, the beloved host of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, showed the strength of quiet resistance through his unwavering commitment to kindness and emotional intelligence. In an era of increasingly fast-paced, sensationalist children’s programming, Rogers trusted his instincts, slowing things down to talk about feelings, challenges, and self-worth. His simple, thoughtful messages helped generations of children feel valued and safe. Rogers’ quiet resistance lay in his belief that nurturing connection and understanding could transform lives—an idea that remains powerful today.

4. Viktor Frankl

Psychiatrist, Holocaust survivor, and author of Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl demonstrated quiet resistance by embracing the power of inner strength and perspective. In the most harrowing conditions of a concentration camp, Frankl discovered that his ability to choose his response to suffering was a form of freedom that no one could take from him. His emphasis on finding meaning in life’s smallest moments—whether through a memory, a kind gesture, or a glimpse of beauty—offers a profound lesson in the enduring strength of the human spirit.

What Quiet Resistance Can Look Like for You

In a world that often encourages overextension and conformity, quiet resistance invites us to embrace an authentic, mindful way of living:

• Cultivate health: Choose habits that nourish your body and mind.
• Create and play: Whether you paint, write, bake, or garden, creative expression is an act of resistance.
• Support and connect: Build community and lift one another.
• Trust your intuition: Believe in your inner knowing.
• Refuse to engage with negativity: Let provocations fall away, untouched.
• Celebrate joy: Appreciate small wonders—sunlight on water, laughter with friends, the feeling of a favorite pen on paper.

Like Zora Neale Hurston, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Fred Rogers, and Viktor Frankl, we have the power to resist through intentional living, making our everyday actions a quiet revolution. These choices may seem small, but they ripple outward, creating a world that values authenticity, compassion, and meaning.

How will you embrace the power of quiet resistance today?

Dancing With The Storm

Harnessing the PNW Bomb Cyclone for Creativity and Ritual

There’s nothing quite like the wild, untamed power of a Pacific Northwest bomb cyclone. The tempestuous winds howl their song, trees sway like dancers in ecstatic trance, and the very air seems to pulse with an energy that’s both chaotic and exhilarating. For me, this storm has been more than a weather phenomenon—it’s been a creative and spiritual catalyst, unlocking fresh inspiration and transforming my ritual practices into a thunderous symphony of divine connection.

Calling the Storm into Ritual

As the storm rolled in, I felt an undeniable call to weave its energy into my work. With the wind tearing through the trees outside my window and my blue-eyed cat, Lulu, curled up on my lap for comfort (or perhaps moral support), I began my ritual preparations. My deities—Isis, Oya, and Artemis—each embodying fierce power, wisdom, and transformative energy, seemed to whisper their presence in the tempest.

• Isis, Mistress of Magic: Her connection to the winds and the power of voice felt palpable in the swirling gusts. I invoked her with a chant, offering words carried by the storm to reach her ears.

• Oya, Goddess of Winds and Change: The cyclone seemed to embody Oya herself, bringing transformation and clearing away stagnancy. I stood by my altar, arms raised, inviting her winds to sweep through my life, leaving only fertile ground for growth.

• Artemis, Huntress of the Wild: As the storm danced through the forested hills around my home, I called to Artemis. The cyclone felt like her hunt, fierce and purposeful, and I asked her to lend her precision and focus to my creative pursuits.

Creating with Cyclonic Energy

After the ritual, I turned to my creative work, pen in hand and journal open on my writing desk. The cyclone's energy coursed through me, and words spilled onto the page with a force I hadn’t felt in months. The wind outside felt like a co-conspirator, urging me to go deeper, to write boldly and unapologetically.

The characters in my current project sprang to life with renewed vigor, their voices sharp and their actions driven. Even my research for a legacy project seemed to take on new dimensions as if the storm had cleared a path for insights and connections I hadn’t noticed before.

Wind as Ally

In magical practice, the wind is often a messenger, a carrier of intentions, and a herald of transformation. This bomb cyclone was no different—it felt like a powerful ally, its energy amplifying every prayer, every word, every thought. As I moved through the day, I made small offerings to honor this ally: a handful of herbs scattered into the gale, a whispered thank-you carried on the breeze, and a moment of stillness to simply listen to the storm’s song.

Lessons from the Cyclone

The bomb cyclone reminded me of a simple but profound truth: sometimes, we need chaos to create clarity. It’s easy to resist the winds of change, to seek shelter and wait for the storm to pass. But when we open ourselves to the storm’s power, we find not destruction but renewal, not chaos but possibility.

As the storm winds begin to calm, I feel a deep gratitude—for the energy it brought, for the inspiration it unlocked, and for the reminder that creativity, like ritual, thrives when we embrace the wild forces surrounding us.

So, next time the winds howl and the trees sway, don’t just hunker down—step into the storm and see where its energy can take you. You might just find yourself swept into something magical. 

Tarot On The Wind

Shuffling whispers, a breath of air,

Cards aloft, with secrets to share.

The wind it stirs, the veil it thins,

A reading carried on restless winds.

Swords slice sharp through skies untamed,

Wands ignite where storms are framed.

Cups spill dreams in rain’s embrace,

Pentacles root in earth’s sweet grace.

The breeze, a guide, both fierce and kind,

Clears the stagnant, frees the mind.

Tarot on the wind takes flight,

A dance of symbols, pure and bright.