By Lorcan Stokes

Reverend Harriett Walden, an influential figure in Seattle known for her activism and work with police accountability, has announced the launch of Virtues Healing Reflection Cards. Having partnered with the Seattle Human Service Department (HSD), Reverend Walden will distribute the cards throughout Seattle in an endeavor focused on community healing. 

"Everyone has trauma. It's what's wrong with the world right now. These virtues are about how to lift people out of suffering and help them find a moral compass and work through things in their lives," Reverend Walden said.

These cards have been an integral part of Reverend Walden's healing circles. A Master Virtues Facilitator who has worked in healing others for decades, these group gatherings bring in people who have experienced the loss of loved ones, often due to gun violence. 

"They're coming to be with other people and want healing," Reverend Walden said. "They want to be in community with people that understand what they're going through.”

The healing circles, which range in size, consist of individuals picking one of the 35 cards with a virtue. Each card includes Reverend Walden's interpretation of virtue and positive affirmations to inspire and aid in healing. While often being a core virtue of the individual, the cards can also act as challenges or virtues that someone may need to further incorporate in their life. Each card includes a link to a video where the card owner can both watch and listen to Reverend Walden define each virtue in her own words. Audio from these clips will be available on streaming services such as Soundcloud.

"In a healing circle, people pick a card, and we talk about what's going on in their lives and how that card speaks to them in that moment," Reverend Walden said. "This is a spiritual program. The way that the energy works is that a person will always get the right card. Nobody has ever pulled a card that wasn't right for them in my doing this of over thirty years. That's the beauty of the cards."

Revered Walden highlighted the importance of the use of the cards and the healing circles, with Seattle experiencing a record-breaking number of homicides in 2023.

"It's a safe place for people who are hurting. For people who last saw a person going to a store, the next time they see them, it's in a casket or at a funeral," Revered Walden said. "That's a lot of trauma. Then, a lot of times, they only get a little information from the detectives. It's a needed place. Not only here but all over the country."

Additionally, Revered Walden highlights what experience card users and those who attend the healing circle, which will be happening throughout 2024, can get from using the virtues.

"Hope and feeling better. There are other people in the circle who can support them. Sometimes, people are isolated. When you're in sorrow and grief, you're thinking, "Where are all the people, and how can I make it through," Reverend Walden said. "We've had people that didn't know they would make it through to the next day. Just getting one card gave them hope."

For more information or to attend a Virtues Healing Circle visit www.virtueshealing.com