1. The times we are experiencing are dark. At these moments we have to become stronger and tougher than ever before. Just like a tree: to grow strong roots it needs powerful winds, humankind often needs outside pressures to change and to evolve. Here is a small reminder.

2. We are not the biggest, fastest or strongest. We don't have claws, fangs or venom, no scales, camouflage, gills or feathers. We are outclassed at all sides of the spectrum. Its a wonder to think we have made it this far against such competitors in retrospection.

3. Yet still, we are the most fearless, resilient and adaptable. When we weren't fast enough to catch our prey we ran them to exhaustion. When they could rip us to shreds we created weapons to surpass them. Alone we stand atop the chain as apex predators.

4. We changed ourselves and our environment in an expedient fashion. We walled ourselves against nature and its dangers, we laughed in the face of evolution and took charge of it and made our own course towards our chosen destiny. We decided to march to our own compass.

5. We took refuge in the coldest and most isolated and inhospitable parts earth had to offer. Some fled to the most humid and densely populated jungles. Others decided the dry arid deserts were more comfortable. We took each challenge presented.

6. We observed the rhythms and the cycles, we created agriculture and civilizations, we grew armies of soldiers as well as poets, scientists, artists, dancers, and philosophers. We domesticated beasts cared for them and made them partners.

7. When there was no food, the body consumed itself for sustenance. When infected with disease we self-destructed our body with heat to dangerous levels to kill the invaders. We discovered and drank dangerous fermented toxins to drown our sorrows.

8 We taught ourselves and each other language, math, science, music, history. We passed down the knowledge of our greatest triumphs and mistakes. We shared our loves and loss, we cautioned and inspired others from beyond the grave.

9. When unhappy with life we threw it all away and went to the mountains to live in abstinence and isolation. There we found ourselves in the shadows and found answers to the greatest dilemmas pondered. We used herbs and medicines to explore and expand our consciousness.

10. Humanity, so severely curious. We turned our antennas outward to explore the heavenly bodies, we turned our tools towards the centers of the planet, to explore the deepest trenches and plate tectonics. We created tools to explore the microcosms, no stone left unturned.

11. Natural-born explorers, humankind threw themselves to the open oceans to discover new landmasses without assurance. Soon we throw ourselves to the infinite beyond to travel to other Worlds and meet new faces. New realities and dimensions not far from grasp and comprehension.

12. Hurricanes, thunderstorms, earth shakes, asteroidal impacts, volcanoes, and solar flares cannot stop us from archiving greatness among disasters. We have survived world wars, plagues, famine, starvation, droughts and most of all we have always survived ourselves.

13. Through strife and conflict, we grew past conceived obstructions and slaughtered stagnation. We have lovingly stared into the abyss and called for its inspection. We pushed ourselves & civilization to break past any limitations. No notion left undiscovered inside of creation.

14. Never forget you are part of the human race, this particular battle won't stop you or break you. We will come out of this fight bloodied and bruised but with new willpower and determination. Unseen shadows scatter at the realization of revelation.

15. We will grow our communities stronger and better connected. We will help each other and spread courage, infect them with kindness, pass on and share our stories to remind ourselves where we come from and most importantly where we are going.

16. In times of pain and suffering, we learn who we truly are and remember what's most important. To love/support one another and to remember that humankind cannot remake itself without suffering for it is both the marble and the sculptor.

17. Questions will be answered in time, as we look back and see the growth we will have had. We will be able to make sense and appreciate in one way or another these times we are going through. I wish you much love, light, and truth in your life. Stay strong.