How to Survive a Challenging Era

That’s why I created my 10-step guide to surviving a challenging era.

To be honest, this list is something I composed for myself. I'm feeling the temptation to fall into anxiety, obsession, and despair. Not only is that not good for me, but it isn’t good for the people in my life, locally and virtually. I want to help and serve.  I wrote it as an urgent reminder to myself — one I hope can also offer some support during these difficult times. Now, more than ever, we need love, kindness, and connection.

P.S. I recommend reading this slowly and thoughtfully as a meditation.

10 Things to Help You Get Through a Tough Time

1. Resist the hate

The most important thing I need to do, which is why I made it #1, is to look inside myself and see if there is any hate, prejudice, or favouritism in my heart.

Is there any group of people I wouldn’t mind seeing ridiculed, persecuted, or eliminated? It’s a hard question to ask ourselves.

But if you want to survive sanely and compassionately in a world that you feel is becoming increasingly hateful and violent, you have to resist those same movements within yourself. Because, at the end of the day, Hate Does Hurt.

2. Love where and how you can

I have a good friend with a trans daughter in the USA.

I expressed my concern to her the day after the inauguration speech proclaiming the end of “transgender lunacy.”

She said that she came to realize there’s nothing she can do about the big picture. But she can make a difference locally. In her own family, with her trans daughter’s friends, their kids’ schools, and local support groups. Love the one you’re with. Love!

3. Find a safe space or be one

I will let it be known near, far, and wide that I am a safe person for marginalized and persecuted groups and individuals.

I have an online presence that is significant enough for me to pronounce that I endeavour to be a safe person and that if you need a safe person to talk to and get compassion, validation, affirmation, encouragement and support from, I’m your guy! Offer yourself as a source of comfort.

Let’s connect on Bluesky and join our community of love and support. Find some comfort with us.

4. Let nature heal you

 Getting outside in the fresh air and around some plants, the sky, the earth, and water… does my soul so good!

Even in the winter here in Canada, just getting outside and feeling the cold, noticing the snow on branches, seeing the wildlife and other humans… it’s invigorating. It wakes you and grounds you, literally!

Get outside.

Nature is a crucial part of fueling my body and inspiring my art. 

I lay it out on Why You Need Nature in your Creative Process.

5. Look after yourself before the world

I have a regime I try to do every day.

I get up, make a coffee, and sit down and read a contemplative book. It’s a serious non-fiction book. Hopefully, it has nothing to do with business. 

For example, I’m reading an excellent and important book by the philosopher Judith Butler, “Who’s Afraid of Gender?”.

I write in my journal, reflecting on my reading and my life.

I then do breathing exercises (à la Wim Hof). Then, I do stretches. Then I go for a run (5K) or a ruck (3K with 50 pounds). Shower.

Then, I get to work on NakedPastor stuff like drawing cartoons, answering emails, writing posts, making videos, and making art.

Then, in the evening, family. And friends if possible. I have to take care of myself to take care of those around me… near and far.

6. Read as an act of resistance

As mentioned previously, I read daily. It’s seriously good material. The kind that gets banned in certain places. I read about autocracy, the inordinately wealthy, the abuse of power, dictators, gender, sexuality, feminism, white supremacy, masculinity, memoir, and so on.

I want to be informed, intelligent and wise.

I refuse to believe the status quo popular opinion or conspiracy theories. I want to know. Truth is essential to me. I want to seek, know, understand, and speak it… especially to power.

Some of those in power prefer their citizens to be illiterate. Resist and read!

7. Make art not war

Art is activism. It’s political. And by art, I mean all the arts… from baking to dance to poetry to painting to code.

It’s all art, and we’re all artists. We can all make something.

Because I make visual art, let me speak about that. I feel something, and then I draw it or paint it. Letting your emotions pour out onto the paper or canvas is so cathartic. It releases so much pressure.

It’s like the way good sex can act like an emotional reboot, so can making art. And it’s revolutionary. Art is resistance! When we honestly express our feelings, it challenges the official script.

Why do you think, during an authoritarian regime, the first to be targeted are the artists, the poets, the writers, and the intellectuals? Because they challenge the party line… just by existing and making art!

Here are 10 Tips for Igniting Your Creativity. So, create!

8. Mobilize and make noise

I live in Canada, where things are calmer, but if I were in the USA, I’d be all in.

I’d join resistance and support groups, write to my political leaders, sign petitions, and spread the word with pamphlets, posters, and brochures. I’d show up for rallies, protests, and marches.

I’d boycott, strike and donate to causes like UNICEF, independent journalists, and local food banks (which I already do).

I’d be a thorn in the side of abusive power—something I already am but from a safer distance.

I won’t stay silent because silence equals complicity, and that’s exactly what they want.

I refuse to be paralyzed.

It’s okay to be scared.

I am.

Just start small, start where you can. Say something. Do something. If you can.

9. Limit your exposure

I had to decide to either continue spiraling downward into a dark vortex of hopelessness or figure out a way to stay buoyant in the midst of bad news.

I would doom scroll, and into doom I’d scroll.

So, I made rules for myself. I would stop scrolling for news on the scrolling apps and instead subscribe to major news that are considered the most reputable sources… such as CBC, BBC, SkyNews, 1440 Daily Digest, and Al Jazeera. I also follow a few independent journalists I trust and respect.

I take a few minutes each day to catch up on major news without getting caught up in the intricate dramas like “Did you see her hat?” that are spun to trap us in a 24/7 cycle of breaking news.

It works. Believe me. I even sleep better.

10. Make a beautiful world and enjoy it

One of my challenges is to BE HERE NOW, out of my head and into my body. The saying goes, “Stay in your head, you’re dead”.

I get outdoors. We enjoy our food. We go for walks. We make love. We listen to music. We make art. We watch good movies or shows or comedians. We read good books. We keep our home tidy and beautiful in our style. We look out our front window at the river that is frozen now but stunning in all its spacious beauty.

This is what my art is about.

It’s not just about creating pretty pictures. They are statements about what is possible and what should be, so let’s preserve it!

Let’s take care of nature, our bodies, our homes, our countries, our people — no one excluded. Let’s make a beautiful world and enjoy it. For everyone!

Staying Strong in Challenging Times

Surviving a challenging era isn’t just about getting through it — it’s about how we show up.

Let’s not give up! That’s exactly what they want.

Instead, let’s resist by being good people who care, love, and stand for something better. Every small act of kindness, every creative expression, and every moment of truth we share helps build the world we want to see.

Remember, we’re in this together!

P.P.S I’d love to know what strategies you’re using to make it through these tough times, so I can add it to my list!

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