What About Today? What About Tomorrow?

Like you, I want change. Change in our leadership. Change in the way we see and speak to each other during our daily discourse. I want to see a change in the way treat our brothers and sisters. I want to see more equitable outcomes for those who have been treated inequitably.

I want to see a change the mindset of our nation that allows racism, sexism, discrimination and a host of other sins, personal and institutional, to go on and on, while we proclaim to detest them. 

I’m tired of the he said, she said. I am tired of the lies, half-truths and innuendo that permeate our politics today. 

I’m tired of the he said, she said. I am tired of the lies, half-truths and innuendo that permeate our politics today. 

And I want to be rid of this almost unbearable weight that all of that has burdened us with. 

I want to feel valued and appreciated, not guilty, unhappy, and frustrated.

The election could help with that. It could. It could be the start. Yet in the end I somehow feel it will take more than that – so today I resolve to be more urgently patient, violently calm, and dreamily awake. I’m of mixed emotions, I guess. As we wait for honest results.

As I contemplate the outcome of this election and perhaps the beginning of some of the changes I want and need to see. I’ve begun to look inward, to do some soul searching and carefully examine my place in how I feel right now. I mean how can someone feel urgently patient, violently calm, and dreamily awake. I have begun to think more thoughtfully about how I can prepare both mentally and physically to not only persevere, but to grow and remain positive in the light of any outcome to this election, win, lose, or draw.

I think my look inward and perhaps yours if you are still reading this … begins by determining that our value isn’t determined by the outcome of this or any election. Our value comes from who we are as a person, from our contribution to something larger than self. Our value comes from how we conduct ourselves in and through adversity.

This election, no matter what its outcome won’t make me less human, it won’t stop me from being more civil in my conversations with others, it won’t make me treat others poorly, I can and will continue to speak out about inequities and the host of ‘isms that have run their course. My value is up to me. It’s not given to me by others – it is and always has been there. I am valued and so are you. 

My value and my peace are mine. They are linked to my contributions and how I see them within the larger context of our society. If and when I contribute positively, I am at peace and I can enjoy the moment – in spite of the noise and craziness around me.  The failure of others does not diminish me or the work I have done or will do. In fact, the failure of others to be good humans provides the rationale and the context for my being and my actions. It is the source of my value. It is and will be my peaceful place.

In the end, I believe this - my value is defined by how I react to my life’s experience, good and bad. I know and believe this too – if in what could be some dark days ahead, if I simply stand by and let our nation fall into anarchy because I disagree with the results 0f this election, without urging patience, understanding and calm, if I don’t peacefully fight for what is right– then I will be complicit in the anarchy. If I react without honesty or integrity, if I engage in an act violence to facilitate an outcome I would rather see, tearing down our social fabric and my surroundings, I am simply reactionary and contributing to the darkness. If I react with hateful comments and ugliness, I am what I despise – simply hateful and ugly. Only I can diminish my value. 

My value Is only diminished when I don’t contribute in a positive manner – I can’t speak for you, but I know this about me, my value comes from building, not tearing down. My value comes from being reasonable and measured in my responses. My value comes from being inclusive and supportive. I believe in being kind, appreciating beauty, and being a positive force for good. No election can or will change that.