After a late-afternoon walk, where the above picture came from, I’m sitting in my kitchen. Sofia just devoured her dinner, and I’m deciding what I’ll do for mine. While I figure out that most important question, I am listening to a playlist that I created three-years ago when life was horrible. It’s filled with songs that make me laugh and cry, but mainly, they distract me. I need to get out of my head. I’m uneasy. Am I the only person trying to distract myself from tomorrow’s election? Certainly not. Many Americans feel it. We are who we are, and tomorrow is going to be another chapter in our personal story.
I had a planned a very nice update on life here in the new house and dealing with a second confinement in France. However, it seemed foolish to think anyone wanted to hear about that this week. Blah..blah..blah..I’m fine here. I’m doing much better than many, and for that, I am grateful. There’s the update.
I thought it would be more appropriate to drop a quick message to all of my readers and just share some of the same angst you feel, “What is going to happen tomorrow when America votes?”
If you think America’s government does not hold the interest of Europe, let me correct that thinking. In Europe, I find people have far greater knowledge of the political events in America than some Americans do. They know Nancy Pelosi and Mitch McConnell, Schumer and Melania, along with a host of other key players. They know about the Supreme Court and the rushed addition of Amy Coney Barrett. In short, they follow what happens in America because they understand the impact it has on the world. Whether they admire or have disdain for America, it has an impact on billions of people. Our cultural, political and social exports are pervasive. One would be hard pressed to find a person in the world that cannot name an American product, celebrity, song or city.
It’s a gift and a curse, because the world watches and judges life with a strong influence on how America behaves. And now the spotlight is shining on what happens next and how America behaves. Will we take to the streets and protest peacefully, or will we destroy so much of what people have worked on over the years. Will we flood social media with noise, or will we sit in quiet contemplation asking ourselves, “What happened and how could I have made a difference?” I don’t know.
We may not know for several days, weeks or even months how it all is going to turn out. However, I do know this. Regardless of the outcome after tomorrow, people will cheer and cry, people will feel vindicated while others feel violated. There will be winners and losers. We will be tested on who we are and how we want to show up after tomorrow. That never changes. At the end of the day…we are who we are.
I want to show-up well after tomorrow. It requires that I remind myself that my world is bigger than a geopolitical border, a party affiliation or just a set of beliefs of how the world should operate. I am not a political party, a believer or a non-believer, gay or straight, pro-life or pro-choice, white, black, Latino or Asian, an activist or a bystander. I refuse to define myself by those simplistic terms.
First, I am a human. A human who wants to see the world open instead of closed. I want to see the hungry fed and the sick aided. I believe in embracing diversity and not fearing it. Everyday, I want to learn something new about the world. Hopefully, I will stop screwing things up when they are just fine. I want to experience things that scare the hell out of me because I see them as foreign, while others see them as common. (I do have one caveat, I draw the line at eating certain street-vendor foods..I’m sorry God, I just can’t go there.)
Regardless of how things turn out after tomorrow, we’re going to need humans in the world to help cope with all the other shit going on out there; COVID-19, terrorism, racism, gender inequality, discrimination and those damn Kardashians (Why are they still making millions?). These are not political problems, but human problems. Yes, there is a tremendous influence governments have over cultural norms, but you can sow or destroy the seed that is planted. You are more whole than a political party, a philosophical belief or a country. You, my friend, are made from the same source that created the Universe. It is so much bigger than we could ever imagine.
I’m asking all of my friends to do what they need to do to feel better about tomorrow’s outcome. If you need to cheer, then cheer. Do you want to cry? Cry. If protesting on the streets dispels your anger and projects your voice–then please exercise your rights. But above all, do it humanely. Do it with love for those that do not see it through the same eyes as you or hear it through the same ears as you. Remain curious about what they see and hear and ask them to be curious. What you learn, may surprise you. Remember, at the end of the day…we are who we are. Who are you and who do you want to be? The magic lies in that question.
Luke