Are you singing a song of innocence, or guilt?
It may be time to change your tune
While sheltering recently in a bunker in Kyiv, Ukraine, 7-year-old Amelia Anisovych burst into song. She gave those huddled for safety from Russian bombs a gentle and captivating rendition of "Let it Go," from the movie Frozen. The video of her performance went viral and became a symbol of how, even in a time of war and destruction, the innocence of a child can bring hope, joy, and yes, even peace.
The song is one of defiance and freedom of letting go of anything we feel represses the truth about ourselves. For Ukrainians, their desire to live in a democracy, free of autocratic rule, has fueled their resistance to the advancing Russian forces. Letting go of their fear and recognizing their unity in the face of a violent onslaught is what has kept Ukrainians in the fight for their freedom and independence.
Amelia's song also reminds us of the truth about ourselves. We are all that little girl, singing a song of defiance in the face of the ego that seeks to keep us enslaved to its motto of "seek but do not find." In the ego's realm we are driven to conquer the world outside of ourselves, believing that will bring us love, joy, and peace. We stay in the ego's clutches because we believe that we are sinners who have somehow offended God and deserve the hardships that befall us. Our religions tell us this is true, and that we must fear the final judgment of God and face a fiery hell for our sins.
That is just another lie of the ego, though. A Course in Miracles assures us of what God's final judgement will be: "You are still My holy Child, forever innocent, forever loving and forever loved, as limitless as your Creator, and completely changeless and forever pure. Therefore, awaken and return to Me. I am Your Creator and you are My Child." (W-pII.10.5)
We tend to forget about our innate innocence when we look around at the world outside – and often when we survey our interior landscape as well. This world is one that fills us with shame, fear, despair, insecurity, blame and grievances. Is it any wonder that wars break out over things outside of ourselves such as land, resources, money, and power? We use our minds to concoct millions of ways to get ahead of someone else, to get more than them, to be more than them.
And yet, A Course reminds us that "the innocence of God is the true state of the mind of God's Child." Amelia is a welcome reminder of the innocence that we all possess. Even as bombs rain down on her home, she can find the inner peace, strength and joy to still sing:
"Let it go, let it go
"I am one with the wind and sky
"Here I stand and here I stay
"Let the storm rage on"
That storm of the ego will always rage on, because that's all it knows how to do. We, the innocent, beloved Children of God, know better though. We know that we are innocent, and if that is true for us, then it is true for everyone else – even those who direct the bombing and killing of their Holy siblings in this bodily world.
Those who drop bombs and invade neighboring countries are lost in their own insane ego that has them under the belief that they cannot be happy until they fulfill their need to conquer the world outside of themselves. Sadly, this is because they are afraid to even look at the world of love, joy, and peace within themselves. Inside, of course, is precisely where we discover the true power of our innocence, and the ego knows if we conquer the world within, it will lose its power over us.
Our duty, though, is to see nothing but innocence – first in ourselves and then reflected in others. "No illusion" that we have ever held against another – be it an illusion of cruelty, insanity or fear, "has touched [their] innocence in any way," A Course says. "[Their] shining purity, wholly untouched by guilt and wholly loving, is bright within you. Let us look upon [them] together and love [them]. For in love of [them] is your guiltlessness."
How can we remember this guiltlessness of all of us, even in a world that screams at us to feel guilty for something 24/7? We can remember Amelia – a child who sings with joy no matter what the situation, because she still remembers her innocence. We can also remember ourselves as children, singing our favorite songs that remind us of our innocence and sacred worth in a world torn apart by division, hatred, greed and war.
One of the things that the Miracles Distribution Center in California has created is what they call their "Wall of Innocence." There, they post pictures of their members when they were about 5 or 6 years old, to remind themselves of the innocence they were born into and have never left, because no matter what kind of mistakes we make in this world of egoic illusions, we are all innocent and worthy of God's love.
That song of innocence sung by Amelia is a good example of how that eternal kind of love travels and permeates the world. After she made it to safety in Poland, she was invited to sing the Ukranian national anthem before thousands of people last weekend at the Atlas Arena in Łódź, Poland during a concert to raise money for Ukraine.
A song of hope and defiance, sung in a bunker by a child, brought a message of hope, joy, peace, and unity to the world. This is why we it is imperative that we continue to sing our song of innocence, because it reminds everyone in the world of their innate innocence, too – and that's the best way to end all the wars – both within and without.
What songs of innocence or guilt are you currently singing? Share in the comments.
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