Condolences to Barack Obama: R.I.P. Madelyn Dunham

Barack Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has passed away today, just one day away from (most likely) seeing her grandson make history by winning the White House.  As many of you may already know, Madelyn played a major role in raising Barack to be the man he is today, and we are all deeply grateful to her for doing so.

I cannot imagine how Obama must be feeling today--the painful poetry of his beloved grandmother's death just before the election must be nearly impossible to sit with.  I imagine he must feel as though he is suspended between two lives--one life fading, another life emerging, with the next 24 hours feeling like some sort of surreal bardo realm between the two. 

Barack Obama, my heart is heavy, and it is with you.

Aside from the impossible pain and sadness that he must be feeling, the timing of her passing seems to congeal the living poetry that i see his life truly representing.  I dearly wish that she could have held on just a couple more days, to see her grandson live his potential and lead the nation ever-closer to fulfilling America's role as the "last best hope" for humanity.  But perhaps this is how the poetry must unfold--genuine greatness being nestled in the heart of impermanence.

I invite you all to visit gratefullness.org, where you can light a candle to offer your own condolences for Obama's loss.  If you like, use the group initials "IL" to create a constellation of candles from the Integral Life community.

And feel free to share your short prayers in the space below.  For my candle, i wrote the following:

"For Barack Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham. May you be America's guardian angel in the years to come."