Post-Lent Reflection | Earth Day | April 22

"Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us." —Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice 

There are a few people in my life—okay, maybe more than a few—who think I’m vain or that my pride gets in the way of relationships. And I’m sure at least a couple of my exes would’ve happily hit me over the head with a shovel during our breakup if they had the chance. But there’s a reason I have a healthy sense of self. A reason I stand so firmly in what I believe. 

I was raised with the classic immigrant blueprint: keep your head down, don’t make waves, work hard, blend in. The whole “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” mentality. And for a long time, I believed that’s what would get me ahead. That submission equaled success. That being “good” meant being quiet. 

Wrong. 

Back in the early 2000s, I lived with my friend Asal in Fremont. I once told her, “I’m just trying to blend in and not be noticed.” And she looked at me like I’d said the most ridiculous thing ever and shot back, “Vangie, it doesn’t matter what you do—you will stand out. Look at us. We’re brown. We’re butch. We’re attractive. You might as well own it. The rules are different for people like us. We have to try harder, and be better than everyone else to be half as good as people who are mediocre. You will never be mediocre, but you'll be compared to mediocre people. So shine as bright as you fucking can.” 

She was right. She always was. And when I forget who I am, I hear her voice in the back of my head reminding me. 

It’s taken me a long time to stop letting people walk all over me. Most folks, if given the chance, will take advantage of your kindness. And when you’re someone who gives, it can feel like your generosity becomes an open invitation to be used. But here’s the thing: I’m not a doormat. I may give freely, but I’ve also learned to protect my energy like it’s sacred. Because it is. 

We live in a society obsessed with scarcity. We’re taught there’s not enough—resources, love, space, success—and so we hoard. We isolate. We buy into this lie that if you have more, I must have less. That in order to succeed, someone else has to fail. But that’s not truth—that’s capitalism talking. 

We’re throwing away food while people starve. We’ve got billionaires launching penis rockets into space while unhoused folks are being criminalized for trying to survive. We could solve hunger and houselessness a dozen times over if we wanted to. But we don’t. Because we’ve been trained to believe some people are disposable. 

People are not disposable. You are not disposable. 

And if that makes me vain to say? Fine. Be vain. Be proud. Be a damn beast if you have to. Love who you are in this body, in this world, right now. Take up space. Be loud. Be you. Because the world would be better if we all stopped trying to be “normal” and just focused on being good. On being kind. On giving a shit. 

Because it’s Earth Day, and you can’t love the earth if you don’t love the people on it. 

We get one life. One planet. One wild, precious existence. So go out there. Tend to the soil. Protect the water. Hold your community tight. Fight for justice. Love like it matters. Because it does. 

“What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” – Micah 6:8 (NRSV)   

Post-Lenten Reflection: Earth, Pride, and Being Enough 

Lent may be over, but the work of becoming—of healing, resisting, hoping, loving—is never done. This Earth Day, let it be a reminder that our sacred calling is to care deeply: for each other, for the land, for our spirits. 

🌱 What parts of yourself have you reclaimed during this Lenten journey? 

🌍 How can you show up for the earth and your community with renewed commitment? 

🌺 What does living a life rooted in justice, pride, and joy look like for you? 

This is holy work. Keep going. The world needs your light. 

Happy Earth Day. 

As above, so below. 

Take care of yourselves. Take care of each other.