Why We Gather: Moving From Overwhelm to Courage

Recorded from a live SAND Gathering (February 2026). From Los Angeles to Minneapolis, communities are turning toward one another in a time of uncertainty, remembering that care begins close to home. Beyond public action, quieter networks of support are taking root: block-by-block relationships grounded in land, lineage, and love.

This gathering explores how spiritual practice, trauma-aware care, and neighborhood organizing are being woven together as living traditions. We ask what it looks like to shift our energy from reactive mobilization toward steady, proactive organizing that can sustain us for the long haul. Drawing from Indigenous memory, Black freedom traditions, diasporic Jewish practices of care, and contemporary grassroots work, we reflect on how mutual care—feeding one another, tending grief, protecting children, honoring the dead—can be reclaimed as daily sacred practice.

This is a conversation about blending spiritual practice and movement practice; about thinking smaller, closer, and more relational; and about learning from quiet, resilient forms of organizing that move people from isolation into coordinated courage.

This conversation invites attunement: How do we stay grounded in grief without collapsing? How do we strengthen relationships across differences? How do small, steady acts of care help communities move from fear toward shared courage?

This is an invitation to listen to the wisdom already alive in our histories, our bodies, and our neighborhoods.

Topics

• 00:00 Welcome and Context
• 02:33 Grounding Breath Practice
• 03:22 Why We Gather Now
• 05:19 Meet the Speakers
• 07:36 Lyila June on Collapse
• 09:12 Chaco Canyon Lesson
• 12:36 Kaira Jewel on Flow
• 16:39 Rejoicing and Ancestors
• 20:04 Rabbi Jessica in Minneapolis
• 24:54 Sacred Geography and Duty
• 29:59 Lyla June on Forgiveness
• 36:22 Liberation for Everyone
• 37:32 Grace and Sobriety Story
• 39:06 Jewish Wisdom and Mutual Care
• 41:27 Feasting Fuels Mutual Aid
• 45:53 Spirituality Is Not Neutral
• 49:11 Sacred Criticism and Fierce Love
• 53:49 Mycelium and Small Acts
• 59:51 Resources and Community Questions
• 01:03:30 Heart Practice for Overwhelm
• 01:06:17 Reweaving Interdependence
• 01:08:46 Warrior Love Closing
• 01:14:31 Final Announcements and Farewell

Decolonial Mental Health Practice: Clinical and Ethical Insights from Palestine with Dr. Samah Jabr (March 1, 8, 15 & 22, 2026 • 9:00 – 11:00am PST online with SAND)

Please consider donating to Rabbi Jessica’s GoFundMe campaign in support of students at Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis. The students are using creative arts to process the trauma of recent encounters involving ICE and U.S. Border Patrol.

In collaboration with local artists, they are developing an art installation intended to uplift and inspire both the school community and their neighbors, while continuing to advocate for justice and safety for all. This project offers a meaningful way to strengthen community bonds and foster collective healing.

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