Yes, I'm still here. September has been...uninspiring...and I have to tell you, I'm not feeling particularly Chipper, Centered, or Grounded lately. I'm leaning on my Coping Mechanisms (walking, journaling, reading, meditating, weekending at the lake) and referencing this article more than a few times. As my favourite doctor, Dr. B. Neurologist Extraordinaire says, I am a great observer and know my body well. It is telling me that I am in need of Gentling (and if that's not a word, it should be) and Radical Self-Care (and that's a term I'm borrowing from my buddy Shirley).
It's not something I'm going through alone; I know that. Those of us who are Concerned Persons feel a sense of desperation and endlessness at times. That sense of being directionless. Those of us who care about others, not just those whose skin colour, race, sex, or gender match our own, feel a sense of almost constant outrage mixed with sadness. We feel a shadow of panic as we see the representatives of our elected government not only enable criminal and immoral activity, but encourage it with impunity. I know I feel a sense of dismay and profound disappointment when I see evidence of support for those people proudly displayed in campaign signs and flags in my own community. I wonder at their embrace of such cruelty, bigotry, and degradation.
I don't even have to mention the stressors caused by the pandemic. We're all living them, unless we subscribe to the Magical Thinking of the deniers and nihilists who are making it worse for everyone by selfishly refusing to follow safety protocols. We all miss our Former Lives, but not nearly as much as those who have died from the virus, alone and afraid, miserable and suffering. We who are Concerned Persons don't simply dismiss them and deny them. We mourn them and know or know of them and recognize the senselessness of their deaths. They weigh on us, and we grieve them.
The current resident of the White House supposedly rode in on a wave of disaffected voters who felt unrepresented. These so-called Flyover State Voters were sick of being ignored; they were tired of Coastal Elites calling the shots in Washington. Is this really what the middle of America comprises, a herd of racist bigots who flock to facebook to spread hideous conspiracy theories? I can't even begin to express my shame for Ohio, which has become more red and gun-happy than Texas. And thanks to savage gerrymandering, it will remain so for this election. So much for the reputation Midwesterners had for being so welcoming, kind, friendly, and...well, you understand.
Excuse me for seeming jaded; I feel the same way about so-called Christians, too. Let me just leave that comment there. I'm sure you understand what I mean.
And here's the thing: nuts and bolts, my basic life has not drastically changed during this administration. My family all have been employed, we've been fortunate to have retained our insurances, we've escaped this virus thus far even though my husband and sons are all essential workers. As one of 45*'s supporters said, we can still gas up our vehicles, put food on the table, and get our booze on the weekend. I know we are incredibly and magnificently fortunate.
But as Concerned Persons, my family all know that It's Not Just About Us. It never is. It's about our Democracy. It's about our friends, our neighbors, our international family, and our status as a world example. It's about the people who need more than we do. It's about standing up for those who are overlooked. It's about adding volume to the voices of the voiceless. It's about righting wrongs. It's about being proud of what we stand for, what our President says and does, and what he or she represents to the world on our behalf. It's about Liberty And Justice For All.
This isolationism, this Only (White) America mindset is small-mindedness to a fault. I'm reminded of the quote by Thomas Paine, political activist and American Revolutionary, "'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death." Only one candidate in this presidential contest can claim true heart, conscience, and principles. As a Concerned Person, I can only hope that others see this and vote to restore heart, conscience, and principles to the White House.
I will be voting early, in person with mask and gloves, and I will be voting Democrat down the ballot. I am voting to send a message and I am voting not just for myself, but for my country and for those who need rights restored. I've had enough.
How about you?
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This is well written and clearly states many of my own feelings. I have felt despair and wonder how people can look at our current president and not see the terrible person that I see. I will vote blue too and hope we can stop the spewing of hate and disinformation and begin to work together to make things better for all. Peace!
ReplyDeleteEllen D.--Thank you. And thank you for wishing me Peace, which is truly what I need. Like you, I wonder at the perspective of others who think he's done wonderful things and is a terrific person. It saddens me, truly.
DeleteThis. Every Single Word of This.
ReplyDeleteBridget--I have to say that your post was what broke the dam for me. I realized I had been stuck for a topic because this was what had been sticking there.
DeleteI know you are likeminded in this and so many other things. Thanks for the push.
Wow Nance, this is so eloquently written. I'm literally sitting here with tears running down my face. I agree with every single word and I will be voting Democrat down the ballot too.
ReplyDeleteMartha--Thank you. Nothing fulfills me more than to know my writing has moved someone. It's a compliment I treasure.
DeleteI used to write about Politics frequently; that's before it became so desperately ugly and continuous. I can't add to the cacophany, in all good conscience. But this had to be said before I could say anything else, it seems.
How about me? You bet. I have been writing to Democrats all over the country with the post card efforts. The post cards are hand written by ordinary folks like me to ordinary folks who are Democrats. I drive around with my BIDEN sign and am sometimes glared at, sometimes cheered and finding myself less alone in this area of Wisconsin , than I thought. But I am holding ,my breath for the November election. COVID is horrid. But this leader of ours is not just mean, but cruel and lacking in his role. Thanks Nance for a honest and needed post.
ReplyDeletekathy b--Thank you for your participation in our Democracy in this way! I wrote dozens and dozens of those postcards myself during the midterms, and we got the Blue Wave. I also phone banked. It's not hard to do, and it's so fulfilling.
DeleteI made sure I got my Biden sign in my yard and got one for each of my sons' yards. And--I flipped two R votes to D's. I was so proud of myself.
Your field work and observation just by driving around with a Biden sign is valuable and encouraging. Wisconsin is looking good for us so far.
And you're welcome for this Real Words post. I was feeling stuck, and this was apparently what was plugging things up.
The TIMES is sighting the idiot paid 750 dollars in tax in his first year in the White House.
ReplyDeletekathy b 2--I saw this citation on the national news. Of course, his followers will say it proves that he's just a smart guy who knows how to beat the system and it proves that the government is corrupt and against them. Or that he gave up a lot of profits to take the job of president--remember, he's donating his salary and gave his businesses to his kids!
DeleteThe rest of us see that he is a failed businessman, a cheat, a con, and someone who is in debt over his head and is cozied up to foreign interests to bail him out.
Yes, I have had enough. Thank you for the post, it helps to know the good people are in this fight together.
ReplyDeleteSandra--Hello, and welcome (back?) to the Dept. You're welcome. I do think there are many, many good people who are now mobilizing to help America regain its footing. I'm glad to hear from one of them in you.
DeleteHear, hear! I agree and adore your line: "It's Not Just About Us." This idea seems to be a huge stumbling block for the Trumpsters. They cannot invision a world in which their preferences and priorities are not the done thing. How do you explain to someone that they aren't all that and a bag of chips? And that it is ok?
ReplyDeleteAlly Bean--Thank you. I do think that he appeals to the worst qualities in people, i.e., those who are a great deal like him. Selfish people who think they are getting the shaft and are looking to blame other people feel he is their voice. It's history repeating itself: choose a minority/marginalized group and make them the scapegoat for your own ills, and add a narcissistic leader who claims to be restoring the nation to its past greatness. It's chilling.
DeleteReading this feels like somebody put my own thoughts and fears to paper (or to screen, as it were.) It is so depressing to see what is happening to this country and to see that there are so many people who support someone they know is morally bankrupt and has not one ounce of integrity--- all because they want to keep their freakin' guns, protect 'White' America and what they seem to think is 'The American Way of Life.' We are a joke in the eyes of the world. Maybe this had to happen for real, necessary reform to come about.
ReplyDeleteI was so crushed when RBG died, and not just because of the repercussions with the balance of SCOTUS. She did so much to help the defenseless and did it with a sense of duty and dedication rarely seen. We just can't let this country sink so low that we can't pull ourselves out of this. It is going to take finding a way to let the supporters of President Voldemort feel that they are valued somehow and also that their fearless leader could really care less about their fate. I don't know how that's going to happen, but if something doesn't change, we have another civil war brewing. Frankly, I think it has already started. I see November onwards being a real roller-coaster ride.
Mr. O. and I will also be voting early on the first day at the nearest polling station as soon as it opens with mask, gloves and hazmat suit if need be. Do not trust mail-in one iota even though we both qualify due to age. This country needs to vote like never, ever before. I just hope we can overcome gerrymandering, poll station closings, and accusations of a 'rigged' election. *sigh*
Oops--- "couldn't care less" (I think, haha)
DeleteOrtizzle--(It's "couldn't". It's always "couldn't care less".)
DeleteYou and I are always sympatico in these things. And I rely on you for an International Perspective.
Frankly, it is too late for the hardcore base to be anything but. Even if he stood on the podium at one of his rallies and said, "You know what? You people disgust me. You're losers and jerks and idiots. But I want you to vote for me because the Radical Left is worse than even you", they'd cheer and wave their signs and yell "FOUR MORE YEARS" and "LOCK HER UP" with glee and cultish fervor.
And other republicans (like James Baker, apparently) will still vote for him because it is Party Uber Alles with them. It's astonishing and outrageous. And you're right--none of them "will go gentle into that good night."
But this time, neither will we.
Your post is representative of how many of us are feeling. Democracy is in peril, but I also feel as if I'm watching my own funeral. At 75 years old, I see all the progress we achieved, protested & marched for and voted to rectify, in peril too. If only RBG hadn't died. It seems race and gender minorities, however they are defined, cannot catch a break.
ReplyDeleteEileen in Fla.--I completely understand. How can we still be fighting these bouts that were already settled years and years ago? How can one person drag us back so far? It's like watching the tide slowly lap away at a sand castle.
DeleteHis supporters are feeling their position threatened. Their White Male Privilege no longer has the same strong currency it once did. They're being forced to see others in their world. It's terrifying. He implies that he'll make all that go away again.
Amen. Jaded in Eastern PA.
ReplyDeleteVera--It's good to know you're with me. (Bring friends!)
DeleteDee--Thank you. I know how you feel, though, and you feel it just as strongly. You'd be surprised how much eloquence passion can lend.
ReplyDeleteAmen, we are of the same spirit...
ReplyDeleteDenise--I know we are. Good to see you here!
DeleteYes yes yes!! All of this! And supposed Christians are THE WORST. I follow a number of progressive Christian leaders on Instagram & they've been giving our conservative brothers & sisters what for - especially about being a one issue voter (the one issue being abortion, of course).
ReplyDeleteBug--You and I have spoken a number of times about the religious aspects of politics, as well as the religious perspective of a few other issues. I value your input.
DeleteThis particular blindspot among the believers truly confounds me. He is so patently amoral and so obviously irreligious. He has not a single instinct of empathy or Christian kindness, yet they truly see him as God's instrument (at least many, many do). Again, it comes down to Willful Ignorance. And that is unChristian, too.
We, like you, are so very fortunate. We all have jobs, we are healthy, and Ted and I can work from home, while Maya just started a new job that is much closer, so she saves a bunch of money on commute costs and a lot less time on public transportation (she even walks home some afternoons).
ReplyDeleteBut also like you, I feel more anxious than I ever have before. I have never been so disgusted nor disheartened by a President before, and I pray that I never will have to again. I am anxious about COVID, about the future of our world and our country. I’m tired of fires in California choking our skies and our lungs. I hate McConnell almost more than Trump, which is saying something. I try to not be completely down and depressed because it doesn’t help, but it’s hard.
I am also writing letters to voters in swing states, this time Nevada, for Vote Forward. I pray it helps.
J--It IS hard not to feel disheartened and ashamed. Unlike the squatter in the WH, we have empathy and feelings for others. We care about people who are undeservedly marginalized and hurting. We care about global issues. We care about things that happen to others. We think about that saying "There but for grace goes I."
DeleteWe know there's more to life than fast money and The Now.
Thank you for your work with Vote Forward. I did it, too.
I appreciate and identify with much of what you say about the concerns felt for so many others. I’ve been able to avoid the situation getting me down based on separating myself from what I cannot control. Also, I have hope that we will weather the Nov. election and its aftermath. One step at a time since that will be just the beginning of getting our nation back on stronger footing but there will be much work to be done.
ReplyDeleteMy generational roots run deep with a part of me always being a Buckeye even though the last of my family and friends there died this year. I am disappointed in how the current Ohio has evolved since I lived there, but hold out hope with people like you still there the better part of Ohioans will eventually emerge. Be kind to yourself, accept the limitations of what you can control and patiently live one day at a time — easier said than done.
Joared--Yes, it is much easier said than done. I certainly know HOW to do all those things. Putting them into practice, as I said in my post, is being done; they are just not currently having the desired effect. It's like that line from the poem: "The world is too much with us, late and soon."
DeleteA great deal of Ohio's problem comes from its mid- to downstate denizens, who are decidedly rural and provincial and have an Us V. Them mentality. You only have to look at Rep. Jim Jordan and see what I'm talking about.
Yes, I've listened to Jordan's spiels. My last two years were spent in southern Ohio which was like living in a different world from what I'd known in central Ohio and my mother's family in northeastern Ohio. Columbus seemed to have flourished though I know the economies of many other areas took some real assaults to which even Cleveland was not immune. Now we've all been knocked for a loop including here in California.
DeleteI stay away from politics on blogging...but, I can say from my point of view, you speak of the heart of the nation.
ReplyDeleteHootin' Anni--I rarely shy away from any topic on my blog. I do keep in mind that my 90-year old mother is a reader, so I refrain from saying anything that might upset her. She is, however, of the same mind as I am politically, so I'm good here.
DeleteI fear for the Heart Of Our Nation. I hope we still have one.
OK....this was scary...I'm writing along, agreeing with every single word you have written, adding a few of my own that mirrors your thoughts, stop to take a sip of water....and watch my words disappear from the page. Surely our little blogs haven't been taken over by the scary people in the White House....a thought that never ever would have crossed my mind in gentler times.
ReplyDeletesteph--Hm. That's strange, indeed. I wonder what happened.
DeleteGlad to know we are of the same mind on this, though. And if something nefarious were truly afoot, this whole post would have been gone.
I can relate to this post! I went away from blogging for a while because of personal reasons and the current political climate. But life goes on, so here I am blogging again. I bookmarked that stress article to read later.
ReplyDeleteMinerva--Writing and sharing at your own little corner of the Internet should be a pleasure and a treat. If it isn't, then you should wait until it feels like it is. Or, like this post, it should feel like it's a talk you want/need to have with supportive friends.
DeleteActually, it's whatever you want it to be. That's the point of having your very own blog.
Welcome back. I hope the article validates what you already know or helps you sort things out. I find it affirming.
Canadian up here, worrying. I hope there are a lot more people like you prepared to glove, line up and dump the clown.
ReplyDeleteMary G--I know that the international community is very worried. I remember visiting Ontario after George W Bush got a second term and being bombarded with questions: "What the hell are you playing at down there?"; "How did you all let that happen?"; "How on earth did he win?", etc. It was even worse when 45* was running and then won. I was so ashamed.
DeleteLet's hope that this time, we do something right and send this pathetic individual packing. I would like to think that we have it in us.
Nancy. I agrree 100%. Going to vote today. NEed to write 25 more post cards to Democrats in OHIO for the postcard grass roots movement. It makes me feel like Im doing somehting
ReplyDeletekathy b--I went to vote yesterday--the first day of early in-person voting in Ohio--and the line was already out the door and around the block. I'm going back today to see if it's less crowded. The Cleveland news showed other county Boards of Elections and all were the same. The last time it was like this was for Pres. Obama's first election. I feel heartened a bit. Write those postcards!
DeleteThanks for the kind mention, my friend! I have to say that even radical self-care doesn't feel like enough these days though. Plus, many of my usual self-care options have been temporarily removed due to the pandemic. That said, like you, I have much to be thankful for during this time when far too many are suffering. And yes, on everything you've said. So much YES. I voted absentee and deposited my ballot in the dropbox outside our registrar's office. I was able to confirm online the next day that my ballot was received. That was a big relief as voting in person was not an option for me.
ReplyDeleteFinal note related to gerrymandering, in VA, we're also voting on an amendment that appears to "improve" the gerrymandering situation but in fact, ultimately puts redistricting into the hands of the GOP and if the amendment is approved to our state constitution, it will be pretty next to impossible to remove it. The wording of the amendment blurb on the ballot is written in such a way that the average citizen will choose the wrong option. Plus, as a friend of a friend said, it's an amendment that has a "poison pill" in the full text of the amendment. Too many details to mention on that. And finally, the amendment overrules the new Anti-Political-Gerrymandering law passed this year and does nothing to ban political gerrymandering. The Amendment provides no rules. It's unbelievable how hard it is to have actual fair voting in our country now. Tweeted earlier by someone who I follow: "Trump AND Republicans are going to lose. They are going to lose big. Democrats will have one shot to implement reforms to ensure we have a more robust democracy. I hope they rise and meet the moment. It will require bold moves." I hope he is right on all. We need a landslide and then we need very bold moves.
Shirley--You are so welcome! You are my go-to when it comes to Self-Care and Gluten-Free. It's great to have such a trusted resource to share, especially for the latter.
DeleteI fully understand the gerrymandering issue in general. Ohio had the selfsame problem and finally got the League of Women Voters to intervene and help write the amendment, which passed but does not go into effect in time for this election, thanks to further wrangling by the republicans' lawyers. A later ruling this past summer saw to that. They are the Voter Supression party. Pure Evil.
I agree with your Twitter friend. Bold initiatives and big changes to ensure a true Democracy must be a top priority in the first 100 days. The erosion of our citizenship has to stop.