Create. Develop solutions. Make plans that offer concrete alternatives to those you disagree with. Seek cooperation and energize your actions toward unity.
It’s okay to feel sad, disappointed, angry. Of course it is. Each of us has a personal lens through which we experience and view life. The pendulum swings, the ocean ebbs and flows - trite yet accurate metaphors. (I’ve written a few posts before on POLITICS so will try not to repeat myself.) Develop goals to care for and help those in need, and the best place to start is in your own local area.
Yet it is also true that when we focus on negativity and fear, demonizing others or referring to them as evil, that feeds the morphic fields that vibrate with those energies.
Study history or simply live long enough, and most of us can reflect upon our human past as constantly shifting. Sometimes what occurred, we vehemently disagree with. And with the path, group, or party we chose. That’s normal.
What I see, though, is how responding in the moments of despair and putting that negativity on public platforms, deranges one’s self as well as others. Feel the feelings. Absolutely. But is there an actual need to vomit those feelings all over social media without having even processed them? Without having found your own path through them so that you can continue forward with strength? Without showing others how you are rising above your fears? Without providing constructive criticism and potential concrete solutions? Probably not. Our culture has promoted public proclamations that encourage ‘misery loves company’ — a tendency that ratchets up all our negative feelings and actively builds division.
We need to focus on what we are feeling and then be honest: are we actually, tangibly being affected right now or is it manifesting as constant fear of what might happen? Most of the time, it’s the latter. Or we are projecting our fears onto others and envisioning what might happen to them. I saw a brilliant meme/post last year with this common sense advice: make a list of all that you’re afraid of, then get on with your life, periodically checking to see what, if any, of your fears actually manifest in a concrete way that is harmful to you. If something does manifest around you, work to change it or leave — choice. Is it easy? No. Can it be done? Yes, although sometimes it does involve planning and time to implement. Activism has always been honored as a part of American freedom, but to be worth the time and effort involved, its best results arise when we have a concrete plan to implement that is legal and ultimately unifying. Ranting and raving along with destructive actions is divisive.
I’m dismayed when I see ‘influencers’ on social media, especially those who profess to be spiritual or enlightened or simply see themselves as kindhearted caregivers or healers, spreading fear, usually based upon their own past experiences and then projecting them into the future and onto people they see as evil, just because those people take a different view and approach to life.
In our country of the United States of America, we are gifted with a vast land of opportunities and possibilities — for everyone, if people would focus on actually living their best life — this means act in every moment to build the life you want in the location you want.
Stop making enemies by trying to mandate/force others to acknowledge who you see yourself as; that only matters to your inner world. Stop trying to coerce/force others to believe as you do; part of freedom of speech and freedom of religion is in NOT forcing others to believe as you do. As long as no physical harms are done, which are already illegal actions and need no further clarifications. The majority of people are more concerned with living their best lives.
If you feel scared to be yourself — move somewhere else when you become an adult. We have fifty states we can choose to live in, every single one of them different in a multitude of ways. I did that myself; as a young adult, I sought out locations where I felt safe and at home there, pulling up and moving on if it didn’t work out the way I’d hoped. Was it hard? Absolutely. Did I learn a ton? For sure.
Stop blaming other people or being frightened of them just because they disagree or don’t see you the way you demand that they do. Just be you. Being disliked or disapproved of isn’t violence; only children or immature adults fall into that trap. Force, coercion, and mandating acceptance of differences nearly always backfires.
We don’t live in a utopia; we humans are a deeply flawed species while also containing amazing qualities. So keep choosing a path toward your best life, be the example, and that will filter into inspiration for others. Being all ‘doom and gloom’ lacks vision as well as inspiration and drags everyone else down unless you can also reveal options of encouragement.
The best way to change our world remains the oldest and simplest: walk your talk and be the change you want to see.
I end as I began this essay …
Be creative. Develop solutions. Make plans that offer concrete alternatives to those you disagree with. Seek cooperation and energies of unity. Express compassion and peace.
