We have seen in the past several years an increase in fear, anger, and fanaticism. We have two sides that are seemingly determined to destroy one another, and each side is convinced that their way is the right way. This is very dangerous. This is how we start to self-destruct because we do not know who we are.
Further, if we take away the identities of those we fear or the lifestyles that we fear and do not understand, we can label them. Labeling someone takes away from them being human and so it is easier to be cruel to them and take away their rights. The root of suffering comes from such hatred.
I am not a religious person in the sense that I attend church every Sunday, but I am spiritual. I find God in the woods as I walk the trails and sit among the trees. I find Jesus when I am serving others and trying to help them and understand that every human needs love and compassion. This is also when I am mindful of the teachings of Thich Nhat Hahn.
The events that have been unfolding the past several days are an attempt to make others less. Groups have been labeled, bullied, scorned, and all by their fellow man and woman. I do not believe this kind of behavior was practiced by Christ. What we have done has harmed one another and our nation. We have failed to realize that we must be a community in order to survive. It is difficult to sit back and accept the hate that is being televised or seen on the main street of any American town. What has been done is a group of people, The LGBTQ community, and more so, those who are transgender, have been used as the enemies to get the public scared and officials elected. They told lies and spread fear, using a group of people who appear different than them, to gain power. Of course, this is not all they have done. People gain power by spreading hate to more than just one group, so we had to make immigrants or even Birthright Citizens the enemy. When you take away someone’s identity, you make them easier to destroy by dehumanizing them.
However, I think we underestimate the good in people, and I believe the LGBTQ community has also been underestimated. They are not weak. They are not passive. And, they have more than half the nation standing with them. They are resilient and have proven that time and time again over the years. Don’t underestimate their resolve.
There will be many that will try to say they elected an individual for their economic policies, or to protect the borders. They will say it was because of abortion. Perhaps for some, this is true, but there are a huge majority of right wing voters who voted because of homophobic, racists, womanizing ideals. As we saw in the 20th century, people most likely realize they are harming others with their decisions, but will struggle to admit it as such. They will make excuses, deflect, and gaslight. Study the definition of Gaslighting: Gaslighting is a form of emotional abuse and mental manipulation that makes you doubt your sanity and self-worth. If you watch any conversion, interview, political speech, or comments on social media, you will witness gaslighting firsthand. Understand it well because it is meant to control you and think you are wrong. It’s no different than an abusive relationship.
Allow me to turn a different direction for a moment. I challenge you all to be mindful of one another and those who surround you. Go to the grocery store, bookstore, cafe, your favorite restaurant, place of worship, and work, and just be aware of who you are with. Talk to them. Hear their stories and listen intently. Ask them about their past, their hopes, goals, and desires. Ask them about the times they have suffered. I believe what we will find is we have more in common with one another than not. Most people desire freedom of choice. They desire a safe place to live and perhaps raise their children. They want their basic needs met, and they want to be loved. They want their elderly parents to age and die with dignity, and they want to dream of a better world and have a respected place in it. There will be some in our world, and we are seeing this now, where they want to separate us. If they can divide us and get us scrambling in thought, fighting with one another, they can do as they wish without anyone noticing. They can put laws into place that are unfair, unequal, and unjust. They can throw out fascist signs, telling you exactly who they are, and then deny it. I have friends that are Republicans and I know they do not want to cause me harm, and I believe in their heart of hearts they do not want anyone to be treated poorly or differently. However, they allowed a man, and now many men, to come along and convince them that “The Golden Age of America” is taking the identities of certain groups, making other groups seem lawless, and pardoning criminals who claim to be patriots. Prisoners who blatantly attacked our police officers and constitution. I refuse to believe that good people, many that I know who voted with their republican beliefs in a “normal” republican system, agree with letting violent criminals from far right groups loose. This is why many Republican leaders are stepping up and saying they disagree with the decision to let these people out of prison. Unfortunately, those officials, even though they are republican, will be silenced. That is, unless they are brave enough to take a stand because this really is not about political parties, it’s about morals and ethics. It’s about ego and consuming power.
What is needed now? We must stay centered and not become distracted by the chaos. They want that so they can control you and act while you are not looking. It’s part of the playbook from Sun Tzu’s, The Art of War. Read it, study it, and then pick up Mediations, by Marcus Aurelius. Keep your values at the forefront and do not allow others to frighten you into believing the way they do, especially you who cast your vote for this current administration and are starting to realize the mistake you made. He told you what he was going to do and the harm he was going to cause, but he convinced you it would not be harmful.
Do not try to defeat or change the far right and their beliefs. It’s not possible. One cannot change anyone but themselves. We can only hope that many of them will find a moment of moral clarity and speak out against what their chosen leader has done and will continue to do.
Mindset is most important. Keep your core virtues and do not submit: Courage, Justice, Humanity, Temperance, Wisdom, and Transcendance. Face and confront the current reality with discipline. Build a daily routine, understand what is in your control and what is not, own your decisions, reflect often and become more self-aware. The idea of impermanence is more important than ever. Everything in life is impermanent, including the unjust actions we are seeing now. What you can do now is hold yourself to a moral high ground and maintain your self-respect. Many have lost theirs. They don’t know it yet, but when you wish others ill intent or want to make them feel less than human, self-respect dissipates. There is also Karma, it is a very real thing that will one day enter the oppressors' lives. I have seen many unethical leaders self-destruct. Then, prepare yourself for what is to come. Our president pardoned criminals that are loyal to him for a reason, so prepare for it.
It is a time to reclaim agency. Agency is more than simply being empowered. It is a mindset and learnable actions that help us attain what we want from this life. We do this by connecting with ourselves, maintaining our truth, and conducting ourselves in a way that is of service to others. Agency helps us find practical solutions to problems. The world will change, as does life, but we must adjust, adapt, and then overcome the challenges ahead. That builds resilience.
One of the most powerful things that I have done for my mental health, and right now I am worried about many people’s mental health, especially those who have been isolated and attacked by this unethical movement, is to reframe my thoughts. Reframing is a way to change your perspective to cope with the situation that is making you suffer. It is a cognitive reconstruction. I will give you a quick example. I recently told a group that I was glad that I have had depression most of my life and anxiety for nearly a decade. Why? By learning how to navigate and cope with my suffering, I have been able to help others with their mental health. When bad things happen, always ask, “What can I learn from this? What is this teaching me?” It takes away from being a victim and puts you back in control of your life. I took my depression and have tried to make something good from it. That’s just one example, I reframe my thinking often and it’s helped me to overcome many obstacles they may have otherwise sunk me into a dark hole somewhere.
Perhaps I have said too much here, or maybe not enough. I do not want to offend people who voted for the chaos that is unfolding. I would rather have them read my words and reflect. To truly reflect and place themselves in the shoes of those being impacted by all of the decisions taking place. Maybe start by placing themselves in the shoes of the police officers who were assaulted at the nation's capital on January 6. I would also love for the far left to pause for a moment and reflect. I know this is going to make so many of you upset because you are also angry. I am too, but I refuse to let anger control me or cloud my judgment. I plead to you to just take a moment and reflect on some of the past decisions, attitudes, actions, and extremes that the left have taken that may have contributed to the loss of two parties. That may sound confusing, but the movement that placed our president in office is certainly not the democratic party, but it is also not the people who come from a true republican party. What is happening now is different. It’s more dangerous and undermines what America stands for, or at least once stood for. This is why we saw so many republican leaders speak out against the unethical person who now holds office.
Stand strong, find quiet, look within, be compassionate, look at your neighbor with empathy no matter their pronoun, and understand that we are all part of the human race. We have seen this before in our history and have risen to defeat tyranny. Be mindful and make no mistake, there are cruel people among us that desire what is happening and will bring even more cruelty to the country. It may have started by increasing fear of the LGBTQ community and immigrants, but that kind of hate will eventually spread further to everyone who is not like them and holds their far right beliefs, or is a different skin color.
Reclaim agency, filter out the current interruptions that are intentionally being force fed to you and focus on what matters.
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