As we approach the 2020 election, I found this letter that I wrote after the 2016 election. It certainly seems to fit in the here and now. Add to this a pandemic, 170,000 Americans dying, massive unemployment and even more divisiveness and it only amplifies the need to come together RIGHT NOW.
I’m a peacebuilder. I’ve had the awesome opportunity to walk the halls of congress lobbying for peace. Peace that is not exclusive to one set of people or values. Peace for all. Peace for the BLM movement, peace for police, peace for Muslims, peace for LGBTQ+, and peace for the Trump supporter, peace for the Dems, peace for all.
We, the People and all that…
Peace is the driving force for a lot of us. We want to make the world a safe, peaceful place for our children. Ask any reasonable person of any faith in any country and they will tell you the same thing.
But getting peaceful isn’t all sweet smelling roses and yoga pants. Sometimes its the hardest thing you can do. Transformational peacebuilding takes courage, strength and consistency.
Getting ‘real’ with myself a few years ago, I asked myself if I was truly at peace with myself. I looked into my heart and I realized I wasn’t. After sitting in the space of this realization for well over a year, testing it out to determine if it was a fleeting feeling or my Truth, I knew it was the latter. This set me on a life path that was painful and stressful, yet beautifully sharp at the same time. But I knew for all those involved, it was the right path to take. Instead of keeping the festering wounds covered and hidden, I chose to rip off the bandage and clean the wounds out. Now I’m healing on a deeper level and am more fully alive than I’ve been in a long time.
That’s where I see US right now. Rock bottom. The proverbial fork in the road. Time to make the hard choices. To get ‘real.’ No more fluff or falling back to sleep. We’ve had some festering wounds for a long, long time. In some regards, since the founding of this nation. It’s time to clean it out, and we all know how painful it can be to clean out a wound. But it’s temporary. There is a way through it and out of it. Really doing ‘The Work’ is, IMHO, the only way to clear out the festering wounds.
Compassion, empathy and patience with and for each other… and ourselves.
LISTEN to each other. Listen to their pain, their fear.
Don’t tell people how to feel, that they should get over it.
YOU may not have anything to fear, you’re children may not have anything to fear. And that is a good thing.
Honestly, if you are white, male, Christian and straight, REALLY you have no idea. Unless you are like my brother who finds it hard to be a white male right now.
BUT
Those that are fearful are more so because they feel frightened by the rhetoric and enormous backlash that has been fueled in this campaign and election. More so than any previous cycle in our history.
So listen and open your heart. Be humble. You don’t know their pain. But I hope you can empathize with it.
And it’s proven that once people feel heard and acknowledged, their fear, anger, anxiety, etc. dissipates. And once they know they are not alone, that someone has their backs, even more so.
Trump may have won. But I’m taking his win as a sign to stay awake, to work harder for peace than I’ve ever had. For your kids and mine. THIS is when we make our choice. Peace and Love are worth fighting for and stronger than anything else. And this girl will NOT go quietly.
We, the People are stronger together when we stand together. As #kidpresident said “You don’t have to agree eye to eye to work shoulder to shoulder.”
Peace and Love Amplifiers 