So, this election is a nail biter, right?
Perhaps our opening music, that features the words of St. Julian of Norwich, might serve to sooth us as votes are counted:
Speaking of elections, what some of you might not know about me is that I grew up in the Washington D.C. area. It is an interesting town. It is the only place I know of where the culture can completely change with every 4 or 8 years with election.
We came to D.C. with the Regan administration. That was a time when movie star sightings were common, you could run into someone like Elizabeth Taylor in a public restroom (I did so!) and glamor was the culture.
Then Bush wins the next election and all the sudden it was like Texas came to D.C. Cowboy hats and boots everywhere.
It also meant for me, who’s childhood friends were kids of senators, congressmen, and diplomats…..they moved away and new friends needed to be made.
After I moved away as a young adult, I learned it is not like that everywhere. After an election in most places in America, the people do not immediately change.
If there is a lame duck session after an election, where it is just a couple of months left till new leadership goes into place, I can tell you historically not much changes legislatively in D.C. People are leaving, people are moving in, and there’s hours of prep work going into an inauguration.
So where does that leave us? We all voted for the leader we thought would change things for the better and most of the time - essentially nothing goes on for a couple of months, win, lose, or draw?
We are still here, the people around us are still the same.
It leaves us where it always was in the first place, squarely in our laps as individuals.
As the scriptures say, “Choose ye this day whom you will serve.” And of course, I render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s as far as government goes. But as for me and my house, we serve the Divine.
While I do agree that good legislation is often necessary for a just society, there are some pretty clear scriptures in every faith tradition that can help guide us individually. The Golden Rule, “Do under others as you would have done to you,” is taught in just about all world faith traditions.
The “done unto you” is something I think is a good area for to focus on as individuals first.
The simple act of being kind to ourselves can actually save lives in the time of COVID 19. I was recently sick with that for weeks and weeks. There is a good chance I might have caught it from someone who made the decision to push through and go to work even though they felt sick.
I am no longer angry about that; because I realized it is a culture we have created for ourselves. Tradtionally been viewed as heroic to push through and work when we are unwell. We are awarded in school for "perfect attendance" inspiring many to attnd school even when sick. It is a culture we can change, even just as individuals by……. being kind. Kind to ourselves first, then to others.
Kindness is not governed. As far as I know you cannot legislate it. And from what I observed, it comes naturally to most people. I had no end of kind gestures extended to me when I was not feeling well.
The biggest struggle for me was to be kind to myself and not push to do things before their time. I'm still working on that. But I need no legislative act to strive to be a good example of self-care and healing to others.
It is all well and good to desire a good president. Even better is the desire and practical acts of care that cultivate a good you.
That sort of thing naturally leads to acts of kindness toward each other, and a better world for everybody, no matter what crazy thing is going on in Washington D.C. As a former resident of the area, I can assure you crazy things go on there all the time.
I believe in the power of kindness. We do not need a political party or even a religious affiliation to be kind. It is how I know what our opening song states to be Truth: “Every shadow will shine in the fullness of time and bloom in the hearts of the brave.”
As a Facebook friend Marcy Baruch posted today online, “No matter what happens, I still believe in us.”
I would only add that I believe in us, because I know us all to have the capacity to be kind. It is a choice to do so. It is up to us individually to choose wisely and lead by example.
I thank you for reading, be blessed this day.
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