My walk yesterday

I took a walk yesterday, in the morning, and, yes, it was freezing cold.

Strangely, I ran into a couple people I know, and of course the topic of the election the night before came up.

All right, before I go too much further, I will apologize ahead of time for any statements in here that may run counter to your particular political leanings.

I do have friends on both sides of the bipartisan divide (gulf?) (chasm?), but we have been pretty good about walking the line when we spend time together, and we generally keep our politic-chatter to a bare minimum. So, if you read this and it crosses the line, I am sorry.

But, this is my blog, and so it’s my opinion.

On my walk, the friends I ran into were in very doom-and-gloomy moods. They were very vocal about how “fucked” the country is, and how we may be losing another fifty years of environmental efforts, and we will be losing all of our human rights. The overall mood ran from pretty bleak through full-on panic, all the way to rage and hatred (from quite devout liberals I have to add). They were bordering on emulating Chicken Little, or the bearded, crazy-looking guy on the corner with the sign that reads “The end is nigh”.

Or, they even kind of acted like a power-entitled wanna-be dictator acts when he loses.

You know the one.

Because I hate to do it, and I do avoid it at all costs, I am not actually writing about the politics, about the issues and platforms, the promises and threats. I am not going to address that. I have my own feelings – just as you have your own – but that is not what I want to write about.

What struck me yesterday, during my morning walk, and for most of the afternoon, was the “tone” of what I had heard: depression, hopelessness, anger, outrage, disbelief, and even a nod to violence. Again, I have my own feelings along the way here, and I can’t or won’t tell you I wasn’t struggling a bit with all of those emotions as well.

But something else was missing. What was missing was the fundamental background of what these liberal-minded people stood for in the first place, the very thing that they were voting for when they cast their votes for their favored candidate:

Hope.

Forgiveness.

Tolerance.

Understanding.

They were all missing.

Hopefully it is just shock – just temporary – but the anger and the tone of betrayal rang loud.

And the disbelief.

Yes. We lost. I believe that all of us around the world lost, whether or not many will actually admit it, or even comprehend how much was actually lost on Tuesday.

It is a hard truth, but maybe in time things can improve.

We can agree that there will be a lot in the works for the next four years, and that we may feel disappointed with our “fellow Americans”, but we are only helping to cement those very Trump ideals when we forget to behave (live) by our own standards. As I listened yesterday I realized that the transition doesn’t even take place for two more months, but he and his people are already winning – before he ever takes office – if we sacrifice our values and morals and run to the top of the hill screaming obscenities and “anti” rhetoric.

If we become them, we support them.

I know I am, as I suppose that many of us are, surprised (disgusted?) (dismayed?) that our fellow people, the folks we call our coworkers and neighbors, family members and strangers, could support someone who exhibits and encourages such vile social, civil, and societal traits.

But should we emulate them to educate them?

I don’t think so.

I think this is the time to remember our values and to keep pushing our message out into the world in the right way: in a message and an example of hope, of fortitude, of love, of acceptance, and of forgiveness. Perhaps we can educate, or, at the very least, elucidate, and hope that the awareness will come eventually to those wearing the socio-narcissistic blinders.

When we win we need to lead through example.

But, at times like this, when we lose, we need to follow through example.

Otherwise he wins.

They win.