On Collective Power, Seeds of Intention, and Cultures of Care

A late harvest of yellow corn at my little sister's farm in Panama.

Today in the Mayan Calendar is an auspicious day to plant seeds of intention for that which we would like to harvest in the coming seasons. This has me thinking about collective power, seeds of intention, and cultures of care. So I thought I would share what is present for me and for our collectives on this auspicious day. I cannot help but think that personal power is the foundation for collective power. And collective power perhaps one of the key elements allowing us to determine how our societies function and are governed. In much of the world, too many of us - the Global Majority - are currently witnessing and/or experiencing the harms and violence of systems of governance created and perpetuated by colonial systems.  

These systems rooted in patriarchy, white supremacy, heteronormativity, ableism, and unsatiable economic extraction and exploitation – impacting not only humans, but also plants, animals, and all other living beings necessary for the balance of the many ecosystems that make up our shared biosphere – can only be transformed through the wielding of our collective power. And wielding our collective power requires skill in the restoration and healthy use of our personal power, in service of creating cultures of care... in service of life!

Power may carry a negative connotation for many of us, so it may be helpful to reframe our ideas of and relationship to power.  Power is neutral. If we have a negative association with power, this is most likely based on us primarily witnessing models of power designed to divide, control, and exploit. While power can be used in service of harm, violence, and exploitation, it can also be used to disrupt or reduce harm, and to create cultures of care.

One definition of power is “our capacity to direct our own energy.”  And how do we direct our energy? Through our attention: they say that “where attention goes, energy flows.”  Our attention is our most valued resource, which is why there’s a multi-trillion dollar industry dedicated to capturing our attention.  By consciously choosing where we place our attention, and thus where we invest our energy, we reclaim our personal power.

If being mindful of what we give our attention to is our first step on the road to reclaiming our power, the second step is getting clear about our intentions. Intentions are aims that guide our actions.  Our intentions are that which our hearts desire to generate or bring to life into the world, and which generate the right energy, serving as an impulse for aligned action. Aligned action means that we are conscious of whether the way we choose to act is aligned or congruent with the results that we want to generate. Our intentions can then become the loving recipient of our attention. 

By giving our attention to our intentions, we are not only exercising power and agency (by directing our energy), we are also informing the universe of what we desire, allowing us to receive support from the unseen world. For some this may mean support from the Divine (God, Creator, Source, Love, etc.), from ancestors (familial or societal), from Nature (Mother Earth, Pachamama, life, the four elements, etc.), or from all these or more. 

If we do not yet have a connection with any part of the unseen world, it is worth noting here that in every culture, prior to the ravages of patriarchy and colonization, this connection existed and was considered an integral resource for survival and beyond. Any sense of disconnection from the unseen and “more than human” world could be considered as a valid trauma response to spiritual abuse or toxic religion, or as one more of the sad symptoms of harmful systems. Thus, reconnecting with or ‘re-membering’ ourselves as in relationship - or even one - with the unseen world could be an important first step to our personal and collective healing and liberation.

Just as the seed of any tree, plant, or flower contains all of the material in them to produce the fruit or flower that lives in them, our seeds of intention can produce the cultures of care that we would like to create. We water and nourish these seeds of intention through our loving attention, and in this way, we experience the power of bringing to life the future we dream of and deserve!

I invite you to consider what are the seeds of intention in service of life that you would like to plant today. Share them here if you would like us to hold these intentions as a collective on this auspicious day. Can't wait to learn about what we are planting together today, surely to be harvested in the near future.

With love and gratitude,

Itzy