FERNWOOD FITNESS - PULSE eMagazine - Issue#7 - Flipbook - Page 53
Despite the immense difficulty
of facing the climate reality, it’s
not only painful emotions that arise.
When we harness the courage to face
these challenging emotions head on,
we can also feel positive emotions.
We can feel inspired, connected,
and gritty hope for the future.
Glenn Albrecht has words for posi琀椀ve emo琀椀ons
too; “Topophilia” (a strong sense of a琀琀achment
to a par琀椀cular place), “Biophilia” (a love of life
and the natural world), “Endemophilia” (the
deep, sa琀椀sfying feeling of being truly at home
with one’s place and culture), “Eu琀椀erria” (the
posi琀椀ve feeling of oneness with the earth and
a deep sense of peace and connectedness),
and “Sumbalere” (to nourish and care for living
beings at all scales).
To feel these posi琀椀ve emo琀椀ons, we must 昀椀rst
face the climate truth and welcome the fear,
grief and pain. Perhaps the greatest challenge
of all is to 昀椀nd a way to do this without being
crushed and immobilised by the weight of
them. This may seem an impossible task, but
the answer is right there in front of us, si琀�ng
deeply in our intui琀椀on. We must be vulnerable,
connect with those around us who feel what
we feel, and speak our truth.
When we share with others, we no longer feel
alone, and this is an extremely powerful way to
honour and engage with our emo琀椀ons. When
we share with others, we also allow them to
share their pain.
For me, the painful emo琀椀ons of climate change
are ever present. As the clock clicked to 12am
on the 1st of January 2024, I watched my
children dance with sparklers under a stunningly
clear and star-昀椀lled sky and whispered to myself
“Please don’t let 2024 be as bad as science
predicts it will be”. I felt solastalgia, and an
intense grief, but alongside this was deep awe,
connec琀椀on and hope. We can hold the tension
between these seemingly opposing emo琀椀ons.
Is this how you feel?
You are not alone.