Here Comes the Sun, Even in a World Like This
A Glimpse of Hope
This is A Glimpse of Hope, where I try to offer one small light each weekend.
Today, the longest day of the year, I bring you a song that reminds us the sun still comes, even when it seems that we don’t have reason to believe again.
TODAY IS THE LONGEST DAY of the year for us in the northern hemisphere.
The sun will set around 9:30 PM in Ukraine, but the light will linger almost until 10.
Even if you're in Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa, this solstice still belongs to you. You're heading into winter while we begin astronomical summer, but from this point forward, the days stretch a little longer. The light begins to return.
And in Australia, this piece of heaven on Earth, where the sun shines like a blessing through all year, still, this day is special.
You always send me words filled with kindness. I can't always reply, which hurts me so much, but I read everything. Your comments stay with me. They keep me going.
Today, one of them came from Joseph. I hope you're here now, reading this. You said your favorite song this time of year is “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles.
That’s one of my favorite songs ever too.
And when I saw your message, I had to stop.
You can play above to listen! ▶️
Did you know George Harrison wrote this masterpiece at Eric Clapton’s house?
He wrote it walking through the garden. He was escaping the cold, escaping pressure, accountants. Just him, a guitar, the sun.
Clapton said it wasn’t something he would have done himself. But that was George. That genius like no other. He brought something magical.
The song wasn’t born out of peace. It was born out of exhaustion.
It was written after a long winter. A winter that felt like it would never end. And still, somehow, George found a way to believe again.
Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here
To play a melody that sounded like a promise. A warm hand placed gently on your shoulder.
Today is the right day to remember that.
Because yes, the sun is shining. Yes, it’s beautiful.
Here comes the sun, doo, doo, doo
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right
But no, it’s not all right.
I’m writing from a country at war. You in America are facing Trump’s return. The world is full of monsters like Putin. And still, the sun shines.
How can anyone see the sun and think, “Everything’s fine”?
It would feel dishonest to say that. But I want to invite you, my friends, to sit with a different question.
Was everything ever truly all right?
Can we point to any moment in history or our lives and say, “That was perfect”?
George wasn’t trying to deny the pain. He was trying to survive it.
He was trying to tell us that light can live beside darkness. That peace is a choice, something that begins inside, not outside.
It’s about your spirit. Not your circumstances.
If you let the beautiful things touch you, they begin to grow. Even when the world hurts, they still grow. Slowly. Steadily.
Little by little, the good takes up more space inside us. The pain is still there, the problems still there, but they no longer get to drive the car.
Because our hearts are stronger.
And let me tell you something that I’ve learned these last 3 years.
You don’t need to live in a war zone to feel like you're fighting one.
You can be fighting a serious disease. You can be mourning someone you lost. You can be struggling to pay your rent, sleeping in your car, sending job applications for two years and getting silence in return.
You can be skipping meals to make it through the week.
You can be feeling invisible. Facing something that doesn’t make the headlines, but breaks you just the same.
And still, the same sun that rises over Kyiv rises for you.
Even if your war isn’t on the news, it’s real.
Your particular war.
From here, from this wounded country, I tell you that the only way out is through the heart.
The only way forward is through warmth. Through connection. Through the smallest choice to believe in something again.
To tell yourself it’s all right. Not because it is, but because it needs to be.
This is the longest day of the year.
Soon, it won’t be.
The light will start to fade. Summer will begin to slow.
But everything in life comes in waves. Everything must be renewed. Emotions. Beliefs. People. We are meant to change. We are meant to begin again.
There is no sun without night. No warmth without cold.
No life without loss.
But the light is here. The sun is shining today.
It’s shining over Ukraine.
And it’s shining over you.
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🔖 Please take a look and join (if you liked, of course) my second journal I just launched recently in honor of our common fight:
📖 “The Divine Comedian: Ukraine’s Journey Through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise” is my first book: about Ukraine, seen from inside the fire, and the hope that refuses to die. Download it for free (PDF & Kindle).
In Canada: a large piece of a mountain (the size of a highrise) in Banff national park broke off and fell and kill$ed two hikers, injuring more. One hiker with her dog ran to safety. Then what did she do? She turned around and went back to help the injured, knowing that the mountain side was unstable. People stayed to help. This is the humanity I want to cherish. When I hear of bombings, I know brave people are helping others and we will never know their stories. They are silent heroes. The real heroes. ❤️ from Canada.
my friend peldyn rescues cats in the deserts of california. each time she loses one- to old age or misfortune alike- she sings Here Comes the Sun to send them into the next realm. 💙💛