Standing Up for Life

This week’s Crisis and Transition post, “The Greta Thunberg of Substack” honors two women whose courage takes very different forms but springs from the same source, a deep love of life. Greta Thunberg’s solitary school strike grew into a worldwide movement, calling on millions to recognize the moral urgency of the climate crisis. Suzanne Taylor’s challenge to a small subset of Substack writers addressing the polycrisis likewise urges us to move beyond analysis and into collaboration, creativity, and action. Both remind us that one voice, spoken with conviction, can ripple outward and awaken others.

The post’s call that “someone has to stand up” resonates powerfully in this moment. We are living through the unraveling of systems that have defined modern life, and it is easy to be overwhelmed by the scale of suffering and collapse. Yet every era of transformation begins when ordinary people find the courage to rise. Whether it is a teenager striking from school or a writer challenging her peers to unite for the planet, standing up becomes an act of faith in the possibility of renewal.

This week’s reflection also reframes what it means to stand with spiritedness. It is not defiance for its own sake, but the bravery, honor, and solidarity of the true warrior, one who stands for life itself. Such spiritedness is what the world needs now: the clarity to see beyond cynicism, the moral strength to reject complacency, and the generosity to support others who dare to act.

The I Ching passages quoted in the post speak to the difficulty of beginnings and the importance of perseverance and inner truth. They remind us that collaboration is not easy, especially among strong minds and independent thinkers, yet unity is born not from sameness but from shared values. Equity, cooperation, regeneration, inclusion, and love are the foundations of the paradigm shift our world so urgently requires.

True transformation begins not only in public acts of courage but in the quiet work of aligning our inner lives with our highest values. The call to stand up is not only about visibility or activism; it is about standing firmly in truth, compassion, and unity. The courage of Greta and Suzanne arises from a depth of conviction that transcends fear. In this sense, their actions remind us that spiritual strength, the inner capacity to stay centered amid turbulence, is essential to any lasting change.

As the post concludes, “we must cross the great water.” This is both a poetic image and a moral imperative. To cross the great water means to move together through uncertainty toward a new shore, a life-centered society built on human unity and reverence for the planet that sustains us. The journey will be difficult, but the current has already begun to move.

Read the full post here.

Toward a more just and loving world.