A large swath of voters in the US elected a man-child to the highest office in the land. Some voted in denial of his words and deeds; others, as far as I can tell, didn’t care. No matter. The President-elect takes office Monday morning, coinciding with a federal holiday honoring the late, great Martin Luther King, Jr. The juxtaposition is depressing.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
As this country mourns the death of former President Jimmy Carter, the President-elect has asked that the flag be raised for his special day, an act that is self-centered, disrespectful, undignified, and crude.
The Carter Center’s mission is to Wage Peace, Fight Disease, and Build Hope.
The new guy wants to set back women’s rights by a century, as he hatefully deports hard-working immigrants while freeing the criminals who attacked the Capital on his behalf. He’s cozying up to three of the world’s wealthiest billionaires while lining his pockets and lying for sport.
When I hear that we’ve “seen worse” or “we’ll get through this,” I cringe. Some of us will be fine, others won’t, and race and gender will unjustly determine many outcomes.
I struggle as I search for ways to be. It takes energy to be scared and angry all the time. Avoiding news coverage helps tame the beast, but it’s always waiting to pounce on the other side.
Joshua Rothman’s piece in the New Yorker suggests that:
“Our political culture tells us to see our opponents as uniformly awful—to reduce them to their vote—and yet ordinary human experience shows that most people are complex, decent, and just trying to get along. What should we prioritize: the stark binaries of politics or the reality of people as we know them? Hope doesn’t deny how grim things are; it doesn’t look away from the news, wish away the signs in the street, or sugarcoat the terrible plans of those coming to power. But it doesn’t deny the potential in people, either. “
In “The Spirit of Hope,” the philosopher Byung-Chul Han “distinguishes between hope and optimism. “Hopeful thinking is not optimistic thinking,” Han writes, with emphasis. Optimism “knows neither doubt nor despair. Its essence is sheer positivity.”
I hope positive thinking, acts of kindness, and truth will see me through.
Gardening Nirvana 
🙏🙏🙏💕 Sending hugs, Alys.
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Right back your way, Jane.
You’ve got a lot going on up north since Trudeau resigned, and the Orange one thinking he can buy Canada. It’s comical, sinister, infuriating, and yet predictable. It’s been impossible to take it all in.
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Exactly. It’s impossible to take it in, every day!
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Sigh
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Beautifully written as always Alys. It is indeed frightening and depressing and feels somewhat like a science fiction novel. I too hope for truth, positivity and the goodness in ordinary people. Sending hugs.
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Thank you for that hug, and for your kind words. It does feel surreal, in that I never thought this would be possible. It’s hard to digest the horrors that lie ahead, the meanness behind so many of these executive orders, and the terrible reality facing immigrants, and anyone else that doesn’t look or talk like him.
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I feel exactly the same way. So down in the dumps that I haven’t had the heart to blog. Thinking of you and sending hugs from Maine.
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Hugs back your way, Laurie. XO
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Well said.
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Thank you. If only it didn’t need to be said.
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🙏🏼 💕
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Yes. I hope you’re doing okay, Eliza.
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Yes, nature is my go-to for balance in all things. :)
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Thank you for expressing my thoughts so eloquently. The political activity taking place today (Monday) is a disgrace to the memory of the man the day is meant to honor. It’s hard not to be so engaged that we exhaust ourselves but at the same time it’s dangerous to check out altogether. Tempting, but dangerous. I, for one, will stand with Martin Luther King Jr. today and turn my back on the other guy.
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Thank you for your kind and supportive words. It is tempting to look away, and I’m certainly limitiing my exposure to the news onslaught. Eventually I will regain my footing and find a way to make a small dent in this madness. Thank you for standing with MLK. He was a remarkable man.
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It’s frightening for the whole world, but I especially feel for you witnessing this horror close-up. May the world come to its senses (because it’s not just the US electing crazy right-wingers) and may sanity and compassion for others and for the Earth grow from somewhere, somehow, in these mad years.
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Thank you for sharing that perspective. I grew up fighting for equal coverage of women and girls sports in the media, writing about gun control and the ERA in school papers, protesting and marching and of course voting, along with donating to important causes. This feels like a reversal of all we’ve fought for with a dollop of meannness for measure. Compassion for others and a healthy Earth benefit everyone. I’ve never been so fearful.
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Beautifully written Alys! Holding onto hope and determined to do what I can. 🙏🏼💕
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Thank you! Hope and determination are a good place to start.
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I think so many of us are sitting in it and having trouble moving forward. Everything on this planet is in flux and it’s the bumpiest ride we have ever had so far. I’m so drained that I spend extra time just looking for things and reasons to carry on. Personally, I thought the timing was perfect. He had to share his day with men so much more qualified and of better caliber than himself as well as the uncooperative weather. It made me realize the Universe had conspired to quash his big moment. Still hoping for a short tenure. But I worry about the number of people in the world that think people like him are a good idea. I realize we need a change but the change needs better direction and motivation. Hang in there with me. We can’t give up now. My fingernails and knuckles are white already.
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Thank you for your comments, MH. We are a divided country, living in a divided world. I’m sorry you too are carrying the weight of the world. Everytime I read something that he’s doing or has done, I cringe and tell myself to disengage. Mike’s putting his hopes on the midterms, but that’s two long years away.
By the by, I read your post this morning and I loved everything about it. I’m heading back to comment soon.
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Heartfelt thanks for honoring President Carter, dear Alys! Watching his funeral service was truly wonderful. The eulogies, so eloquently delivered, were something I will always remember! I watched the inauguration yesterday with great difficulty. It is so frightening to watch the changes that are happening so quickly and turning lives upside down!! Illinois is a Sanctuary state and Chicago is a Sanctuary city. Today he passed a law that allows federal agents to go into schools and churches to find undocumented immigrants. I can’t even imagine the terror that these families are feeling tonight! They must decide if it is safer to send their children to school tomorrow (where we hoped they would be safe) or keep them at home where the agents could suddenly arrive at the door. I try not to watch the news in the morning now. Instead I have been writing in my Morning Pages journal and walking indoors. My husband and I are going to several meetings to learn more about the best ways we can become allies to marginalized people in our community. I’m also going to try to focus my attention on small, creative joys in the coming days. I’m holding you very close to my heart, Alys! Look for the smallest joys in each day, dear heart! 💗 ~ Dawn
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Dawn, thak you for your generous comments. I listened and watched Carter’s service throughout the day, but I just didn’t have it in me to watch the inauguration. I feel sick to my stomach hearing his voice. I’m heartbroken for immigrants everywhere. I’m sending you love and light, along with hope for better days.
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Sending love and strength
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Thank you, Dawn. We need all the love and strength we can muster.
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“The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones”. Shakespeare knew a thing or two, but President Carter and Dr King are shining examples of the obverse. It’s too much to hope that their merit will balance the evil that No. 47 does. I feel the shades of The Handmaid’s Tale approaching.
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I’ve heard more than one person comment on the similarities of The Handmaid’s Tale. It’s chilling. I didn’t know that Shakespeare quote.
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It’s from Julius Caesar, fittingly enough.
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Ah! Thanks for that.
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I heard, but haven’t fact checked, that because of the snow and freezing weather in DC, some flags were frozen in place and couldn’t be raised! I hope it’s true. Poetic justice, I’d say!
I spent Monday ignoring the political events, instead plastering my FB wall with MLK quotes.
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I like the idea of the flags frozen in place. I’m glad you filled your Facebook feed with memorable MLK quotes.It’s been a tough week, dreadig the expected and shocked, still, at the meanness of it all. Thank you for commenting.
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I so appreciate your post/musings. I am struggling and just trying not to live in fear and just focus on what I have control of as otherwise I would feel bleak about the future all the time.
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Thank you, Tierney. Many of us are struggling with what feels like an assault on human rights and our democracy at large. I’m grateful to have creative outlets that provide an emotional escape from the daily grind. I imagine you feel that way too.
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