Ruptures and Reemergence

Rising pressures beneath the earth’s surface can sometimes trigger violent volcanic eruptions, spewing life threatening hot molten lava and gases. The toxic forces destroy everything in their path, and turn lush landscapes into fields of jagged, lifeless, rock. Yet as eruptions abate and hot vents continue to emit heat and noxious gases, ecological succession begins. Birds, winds and people bring what could be the seeds of life anew to the scene. The images below from the big island of Hawaii in 2021, testify to this process of "ruptures and reemergence" just three years after the most recent eruptions of the Kilauea volcano in 2018 that displaced some 1700 people and leveled some 700 homes in suburban areas. While aware of the power of ecological eruptions, we are often blind to a parallel process of ruptures and reemergence that have overtaken communities closer to home. The destructive forces of racial animosity and self interests, a willingness to abandon commitments to truth and a democratic process, and the seeds of a global pandemic were likely roiling just beneath the surface for years, if not decades. The ruptures and scars they wrought during recent years will be ta