I have befriended a Venezuelan single mom who works at a local restaurant. She’s here legally, but scared all the time about her status being changed and being separated from her child. I have given her all our contact info and she has shared it with coworkers and family in Venezuela in case she is wrongfully detained so that we can try to help or make sure her daughter is ok. It’s small but it makes us both feel a little better. We are getting to know her daughter too, so we could be available if the worst happens. She’s becoming like a niece and we value her friendship.
I've put an app blocker on my phone to keep me off Instagram during the day. I wish there was a way to just let go of social media without feeling like I'm letting go of more. I don't know if that makes sense, but that's how I'm feeling.
I did let go of instagram and facebook. It is hard for a few days but you discover very quickly how corrosive it was as you begin to feel better without it. I wrote my first (and only) long-form post on Substack about it (comparing letting it go to Frodo and the Ring).
I just read and loved your essay!!! I think you should repost it with a more specific title that shows people it is about giving up social media. Like: We are all Frodo; the struggle to let go of our "precious" social media. That will alert more people who are struggling (like me!) to finally do it. I'm going to read it a bunch more times to encourage myself to take the plunge. THANK YOU!!!!! 🩷🙏🏻😇
I follow a lot of independent journalists and experts on Instagram, and I feel like if I let go of it, I won’t be as informed. I would still have NPR and the Preamble but somehow that doesn’t seem like enough? Maybe it’s a false sense of “doing something” when I consume news on Instagram/online.
I went off Facebook prior to the 2016 election and have been off of Instagram since this past election. One of the best things I could have done for myself. I have control to decide what I see/read and I am now reading books which hasn't been a hobby for me since middle school!
I did the same and my central nervous system is grateful. I even changed my Substack default view to be the newsletters I subscribe to vs. the feed. Subscribing to newsletters (like The Preamble) and local journalism has helped keep me informed without the firehouse of rage all day.
I joined the League of Women Voters and plan this year to volunteer getting people registered to vote and at education seminars. I want to feel like I’m doing something. It all feels so unsolvable. I’m also trying to YOLO. I want to enjoy the moment because the future seems grim.
Hi Everyone. I feel like there has been so much mixed and mis- information lately. I have been getting my information for a mix of independent media and mainstream media. I try to listen to both sides so I can hear what the "other side" is hearing. Then I read about it. I prefer reading about it. It doesn't seem to have the emotional charge and is easier to fact check immediately.
Things have been so heavy so I have been mentally checking out by reading fiction. It gives my mind a nice little break to live in another world for a little time. Remember audio books count as reading too.
It’s been a tough week. I’m a fourth Japanese and had family members interned and checked in on by the FBI. I grew up thinking that we were past that kind of behavior only to see that we are not. Seeing the man dragged out of his home and the little boy, Liam, in his blue hat were so jarring. It honestly feels like a slap in the face of what my family underwent. I’ve been in a big funk about it. But the Minnesotans response has been SO heartening. I watched the videos of them protesting yesterday and I can’t help but feel buoyed up. I’ve been trying to contribute in my own way with donations and reaching out to my friends who live there. It’s a lot.
Hi! Third-gen Japanese American here and I had relatives interned in Manzanar. Also--my daughter's name is Aubrey! But yes, the recent news coming out of Minnesota has been triggering for me. I am glad that there is so much protest going on--but the deaths have been so needless and the separation of family is not doing anything to protect our borders or make anyone safer. I'm going to keep calling reps and donate to good causes, but other than that I feel really helpless.
Hi Angela!! I’m so sorry to hear about your relatives being at Manzanar. Mine were at Topaz. It’s always been a lot to carry but I’ve tried to use those experiences to advocate for others. I’m in the same boat with making donations and trying call reps. Just wanted to say I feel you and you aren’t alone. Thanks for your comment. It made me feel seen too. ❤️🩹
Guys, What’s the right thing to do? Is there a right answer? Weigh in-
Do we cut off MAGA/far right/conservatives (because let’s be honest, that’s what the party and their reps have shifted towards) and take a stand by refusing to participate in life with them so they see how messed up their thoughts/actions are? Or do we continue to show up, bear witness to them, sprinkling in things to show them the humanity, teach them the other side, offer love and support? Are they too far gone? Should I have to teach them basic empathy? Or is real life connection, even when it’s difficult, important to fight against the propaganda they’re constantly being fed? Or do I say enough is enough, if you are justifying any kind of pedophilia or waiting to justify ice behaviors maybe you’re too far gone?
I think first and foremost is your health and safety. But should you feel up to it, there's a way to engage with MAGA and far right that isn't about proving them wrong (which is impossible to do because they aren't open to contrary ideas). There are two more realistic goals that I think are worth pursuing. 1) Prove that there are thoughtful and intelligent people who have good reason to distrust the Republicans in power. Their most powerful tool is the straw men that they have built with memes and misinformation, but it falls apart when they meet someone who engages with them with respect and reason. 2) If this is an interaction happening in public, proving to the spectators that there is a rational POV that differs from the loudest voices. Some of these spectators aren't indoctrinated, but never hear anything outside of what their MAGA family says. You can be the person that helps them see the light.
PS: true conservatives are a completely different category than MAGA, so if you're talking to someone who is just a conservative who feels politically homeless right now, they can be powerful allies to have when confronting MAGA. They'll probably appreciate someone talking to them like a human being instead of an idiot.
I don't have good answers, but my husband is the primary conservative person in my life and I know his beliefs are a product of his upbringing and education level. I wrestle with "what to do" every day, but I believe deeply there are a VERY few things more important than standing up for this and one of those things is my family. The thing that I have been thinking about this weekend is that cutting these people off completely is just going to deepen their echo chamber - and ours. We need each other to get out of this mess. Unfortunately, that's going to take time... And running out of time is what I am most afraid of.
Such a difficult question. I’m really struggling with these people in my life. I see them differently. I feel that removing myself from their lives is contributing to the problem, but I genuinely question our compatibility and their morality. It’s a wild feeling.
I agree. I have a hard time looking at friends and family the same way now that I know they have so many beliefs contrary to mine. I know they are good people, so it is very hard to come to terms with.
It isn’t politics that has caused me to have to put distance between myself and one of my close friends, it is the hate and vitriol she shared for different groups of people, immigrants, the LGBTQ community and “liberals”. That was too much for me. I wish I didn’t know that side of her but I do and it’s heartbreaking. In the past , disagreeing about political points of view was something i could do with people and we could even laugh about it, but this isn’t politics, this isn’t right vs left, this is right vs wrong, and embracing hate isn’t something I can see past.
I was in a high-demand religion for the first 50 years of my life. I understand how hard it is to eradicate those beliefs, teachings, and IDENTITY. For this reason I choose to stay engaged with them. That said, the lack of compassion that has become a touchstone of the far-right is devastating to witness.
Just want you to know that you aren’t alone in this feeling and I’m also grappling with it. I don’t know anymore. I used to be firmly for maintaining relationships but now… how can I be close to someone who thinks it’s okay to use children as bait :,(.
I think part of the issue is, most people don’t just think it’s ok to do the things we are seeing done (don’t get me wrong, there are those that certainly do). The challenge is really that they are doing a great deal of mental gymnastics to rationalize that what is happening is not actually what it looks like, that there is more to every single story than what their eyes can see and that in that murky “more” is some really perfectly good reason for why this thing that appears to be evil is somehow not. It’s classic confirmation bias. The subconscious desire to be right is so baked into us as humans that being confronted with something that contradicts that will cause the majority of us to embrace wrong thinking so long as it preserves the feeling that we are right. So how can you talk rationally to someone about what’s happening if they have already taken so many turns of self-justification. There is a compounding effect with confirmation bias that is tremendously hard to overcome with mere reasoning. Love is the only way to break through it. And to love someone enough to help them escape the trap of their own mind, you can’t remain aloof from them.
I understand totally. However when we start asking questions sometimes people don’t disagree with that but they are caught up in echo chambers that are one dimensional so they don’t even recognize that some if these things are part of the narrative. There are many people who don’t think it’s right to treat people that way but are blind to the disconnect. Engaging is importance but if there are no ears to hear we can’t change that. I still think it’s worth it to keep trying until you can’t!
The first thing to keep in mind is that people typically have the same goals: low crime, jobs that pay a living wage, good education for their kids, ability to practice THEIR religion, freedom of speech. What differs is how different factions want to define and achieve those goals.
IF you have the mental and emotional capacity (I don’t right now), engage in a conversation. Ask why they think what ICE is doing is OK. Try to find examples in their lives: How would you feel if ICE came for your next door Ukrainian neighbor? Be curious. People often think that what’s happening in other parts of the world or country won’t happen in their neighborhood. NIMBY blinders.
If you can actively listen (without getting angry or having a stroke), practice the empathy on them you wish they had.
I can really relate! I have many friends who are in this position. I am trying to seperate the political from my relationships. Obviously some may be so toxic that you have to walk away but I am trying to listen and when given the opportunity to ask questions and hopefully discuss things. I don’t want to dissolve friendships because of politics. Many of my friends just don’t talk about it and trying to respect that. It’s complex but I I feel like I will lose any opportunity to speak if I just ride them off completely. Just my thoughts.
The people I know who fall under this far right influence tend to only get their news from media outlets like Fox News and Newsmax. There's this emotional/culture comfort of some sorts for them to watch these program that "appear" to be delivering news stories as they are, but we know they are opinion driven. If you go to the homepage of Fox News website you will see the headlines are very different from mainstream media and independent sources. Some top stories don't even appear but ones that do are written in a way to trigger outrage and fear. I don't have the answer with how we move forward but I continuously think about how I want to be remembered and if my great-great grandkids ask what Nonna was like? I hope I can live up to be an ancestor they are proud of.
I am continuing to pay my cleaning people though they are too afraid to leave their homes. I am donating to food shelves and volunteering for food deliveries. I think people are wildly underreacting to what is happening in MN. I'm having very little patience for people who "don't follow politics".
Thank you for more doing, less watching. It’s good to get ideas of what people are doing to protect their own mental health, but I love to hear what people are doing to make a difference. If we all pick a small task it makes a big difference.
I was told last week to stop sharing the atrocities that were happening, that I should just be quiet because this is what the people voted for. This came from someone that I thought shared the same values and beliefs that I did. Made me so sad but it also encouraged me to continue standing up for human decency!
I took a big step and called my MAGA parents to understand what they’ve been hearing and to listen in hopes of figuring out how I can shine a light for them and show them what is really happening in the world. We didn’t argue, just talked. I heard what my dad was parroting and was able to respectfully challenge him and call out the fallacies he is being fed. In my situation, I truly don’t think they understand that they aren’t being given the whole story and they don’t know how to see through the propaganda. My goal wasn’t to change his mind, but to make him say with his own mouth what HE supported, not his party. And many of the things he started saying, he walked back. It wasn’t our last conversation. I plan to have more.
For me, I have decided that I want to be a bridge builder between sides whenever possible. I have babies at home. I can’t go out to protests. But I can make a phone call to people I love who are being misguided and keep those lines of communication open. I want to be a safe place for the changing of minds. It does us no good to hate or to dehumanize those that support this immorality, then we become just like them. It’s really hard to do, but these people are too important for me to let them be led astray so easily.
I spent yesterday writing to my federal and state reps and senators to let them know my thoughts. With everything that is happening, it was hard to focus on one thing, so I focused on ICE.
I also found a great website billtrack50.com which shows you bills sponsored, status of the bill, and how they voted. So I was able to speak about specific bills my state senator sponsored to let him know I don’t agree.
I made sure to thank them all for their service, even the guy I didn’t agree with.
I am trying to limit my intake of social media and the news! Sticking to reliable news sources and taking breaks! It’s not good for me to see and hear the 24/7 bombardments of the same thing all day long! I want to be a steward of my time and my emotions so I can do the next right things where I am in my own spheres. I can’t do everything but small things matter! Looking for beauty wherever I can, gratitude shifts my mind from the crazy! As a person of faith, despite all the darkness I know it’s my responsibility to care about the suffering and cruelty that’s going on. To do whatever I can to push back against it! It grieves me to see many using scripture to justify the things we are seeing in our country! This is not the teachings of Christ! Grateful for the work being done by many who really care about Democracy doing things I cannot do but can support!! Thankful for this space where we can add light to a lot of darkness! Working together even if we never know each other we all play a part!
Avoiding mainstream news and only following trusted sources, taking breaks for nature and exercise, focusing on simple pleasures, and supporting local causes as able.
Get my information from independent media, mostly Substack, but even that has some questionable information. Also check out, AP, Politico, The Atlantic, Reuters. When it is all too much to take, I disconnect and exercise, read fiction, ring handbells at church, and volunteer at a refugee organization.
I have befriended a Venezuelan single mom who works at a local restaurant. She’s here legally, but scared all the time about her status being changed and being separated from her child. I have given her all our contact info and she has shared it with coworkers and family in Venezuela in case she is wrongfully detained so that we can try to help or make sure her daughter is ok. It’s small but it makes us both feel a little better. We are getting to know her daughter too, so we could be available if the worst happens. She’s becoming like a niece and we value her friendship.
Videos of Minnesotans standing up have been one of the most uplifting things this week.
I totally agree. Minnesotans showing up are giving me hope and reminding me that there is good out there!
I've put an app blocker on my phone to keep me off Instagram during the day. I wish there was a way to just let go of social media without feeling like I'm letting go of more. I don't know if that makes sense, but that's how I'm feeling.
I did let go of instagram and facebook. It is hard for a few days but you discover very quickly how corrosive it was as you begin to feel better without it. I wrote my first (and only) long-form post on Substack about it (comparing letting it go to Frodo and the Ring).
You can do it. ❤️
I just read and loved your essay!!! I think you should repost it with a more specific title that shows people it is about giving up social media. Like: We are all Frodo; the struggle to let go of our "precious" social media. That will alert more people who are struggling (like me!) to finally do it. I'm going to read it a bunch more times to encourage myself to take the plunge. THANK YOU!!!!! 🩷🙏🏻😇
Great feedback! I did just that! <3
I follow a lot of independent journalists and experts on Instagram, and I feel like if I let go of it, I won’t be as informed. I would still have NPR and the Preamble but somehow that doesn’t seem like enough? Maybe it’s a false sense of “doing something” when I consume news on Instagram/online.
I went off Facebook prior to the 2016 election and have been off of Instagram since this past election. One of the best things I could have done for myself. I have control to decide what I see/read and I am now reading books which hasn't been a hobby for me since middle school!
I did the same and my central nervous system is grateful. I even changed my Substack default view to be the newsletters I subscribe to vs. the feed. Subscribing to newsletters (like The Preamble) and local journalism has helped keep me informed without the firehouse of rage all day.
I joined the League of Women Voters and plan this year to volunteer getting people registered to vote and at education seminars. I want to feel like I’m doing something. It all feels so unsolvable. I’m also trying to YOLO. I want to enjoy the moment because the future seems grim.
This is wonderful, Jessie. We need volunteers like you right now especially with threats to repeal the 19th amendment. ✊🏼
I'm doing a weekly yoga reset with Yoga With Adrienne on YouTube that's helping me breathe and slow down, 30 minutes at a time.
I'm also reading the Red Rising scifi series about revolution and that's helping to distract me.
And I'm putting limits on social media - nothing before noon or after 10pm. It's helping but I think I could be more restrictive with it to help more.
Hi Everyone. I feel like there has been so much mixed and mis- information lately. I have been getting my information for a mix of independent media and mainstream media. I try to listen to both sides so I can hear what the "other side" is hearing. Then I read about it. I prefer reading about it. It doesn't seem to have the emotional charge and is easier to fact check immediately.
Things have been so heavy so I have been mentally checking out by reading fiction. It gives my mind a nice little break to live in another world for a little time. Remember audio books count as reading too.
Stay safe out there.
I’ve been reading a ton as well.
It’s been a tough week. I’m a fourth Japanese and had family members interned and checked in on by the FBI. I grew up thinking that we were past that kind of behavior only to see that we are not. Seeing the man dragged out of his home and the little boy, Liam, in his blue hat were so jarring. It honestly feels like a slap in the face of what my family underwent. I’ve been in a big funk about it. But the Minnesotans response has been SO heartening. I watched the videos of them protesting yesterday and I can’t help but feel buoyed up. I’ve been trying to contribute in my own way with donations and reaching out to my friends who live there. It’s a lot.
Hi! Third-gen Japanese American here and I had relatives interned in Manzanar. Also--my daughter's name is Aubrey! But yes, the recent news coming out of Minnesota has been triggering for me. I am glad that there is so much protest going on--but the deaths have been so needless and the separation of family is not doing anything to protect our borders or make anyone safer. I'm going to keep calling reps and donate to good causes, but other than that I feel really helpless.
Hi Angela!! I’m so sorry to hear about your relatives being at Manzanar. Mine were at Topaz. It’s always been a lot to carry but I’ve tried to use those experiences to advocate for others. I’m in the same boat with making donations and trying call reps. Just wanted to say I feel you and you aren’t alone. Thanks for your comment. It made me feel seen too. ❤️🩹
Guys, What’s the right thing to do? Is there a right answer? Weigh in-
Do we cut off MAGA/far right/conservatives (because let’s be honest, that’s what the party and their reps have shifted towards) and take a stand by refusing to participate in life with them so they see how messed up their thoughts/actions are? Or do we continue to show up, bear witness to them, sprinkling in things to show them the humanity, teach them the other side, offer love and support? Are they too far gone? Should I have to teach them basic empathy? Or is real life connection, even when it’s difficult, important to fight against the propaganda they’re constantly being fed? Or do I say enough is enough, if you are justifying any kind of pedophilia or waiting to justify ice behaviors maybe you’re too far gone?
I think first and foremost is your health and safety. But should you feel up to it, there's a way to engage with MAGA and far right that isn't about proving them wrong (which is impossible to do because they aren't open to contrary ideas). There are two more realistic goals that I think are worth pursuing. 1) Prove that there are thoughtful and intelligent people who have good reason to distrust the Republicans in power. Their most powerful tool is the straw men that they have built with memes and misinformation, but it falls apart when they meet someone who engages with them with respect and reason. 2) If this is an interaction happening in public, proving to the spectators that there is a rational POV that differs from the loudest voices. Some of these spectators aren't indoctrinated, but never hear anything outside of what their MAGA family says. You can be the person that helps them see the light.
PS: true conservatives are a completely different category than MAGA, so if you're talking to someone who is just a conservative who feels politically homeless right now, they can be powerful allies to have when confronting MAGA. They'll probably appreciate someone talking to them like a human being instead of an idiot.
Perfectly stated, @timothy.
I don't have good answers, but my husband is the primary conservative person in my life and I know his beliefs are a product of his upbringing and education level. I wrestle with "what to do" every day, but I believe deeply there are a VERY few things more important than standing up for this and one of those things is my family. The thing that I have been thinking about this weekend is that cutting these people off completely is just going to deepen their echo chamber - and ours. We need each other to get out of this mess. Unfortunately, that's going to take time... And running out of time is what I am most afraid of.
Such a difficult question. I’m really struggling with these people in my life. I see them differently. I feel that removing myself from their lives is contributing to the problem, but I genuinely question our compatibility and their morality. It’s a wild feeling.
I agree. I have a hard time looking at friends and family the same way now that I know they have so many beliefs contrary to mine. I know they are good people, so it is very hard to come to terms with.
It isn’t politics that has caused me to have to put distance between myself and one of my close friends, it is the hate and vitriol she shared for different groups of people, immigrants, the LGBTQ community and “liberals”. That was too much for me. I wish I didn’t know that side of her but I do and it’s heartbreaking. In the past , disagreeing about political points of view was something i could do with people and we could even laugh about it, but this isn’t politics, this isn’t right vs left, this is right vs wrong, and embracing hate isn’t something I can see past.
I was in a high-demand religion for the first 50 years of my life. I understand how hard it is to eradicate those beliefs, teachings, and IDENTITY. For this reason I choose to stay engaged with them. That said, the lack of compassion that has become a touchstone of the far-right is devastating to witness.
Just want you to know that you aren’t alone in this feeling and I’m also grappling with it. I don’t know anymore. I used to be firmly for maintaining relationships but now… how can I be close to someone who thinks it’s okay to use children as bait :,(.
I think part of the issue is, most people don’t just think it’s ok to do the things we are seeing done (don’t get me wrong, there are those that certainly do). The challenge is really that they are doing a great deal of mental gymnastics to rationalize that what is happening is not actually what it looks like, that there is more to every single story than what their eyes can see and that in that murky “more” is some really perfectly good reason for why this thing that appears to be evil is somehow not. It’s classic confirmation bias. The subconscious desire to be right is so baked into us as humans that being confronted with something that contradicts that will cause the majority of us to embrace wrong thinking so long as it preserves the feeling that we are right. So how can you talk rationally to someone about what’s happening if they have already taken so many turns of self-justification. There is a compounding effect with confirmation bias that is tremendously hard to overcome with mere reasoning. Love is the only way to break through it. And to love someone enough to help them escape the trap of their own mind, you can’t remain aloof from them.
I understand totally. However when we start asking questions sometimes people don’t disagree with that but they are caught up in echo chambers that are one dimensional so they don’t even recognize that some if these things are part of the narrative. There are many people who don’t think it’s right to treat people that way but are blind to the disconnect. Engaging is importance but if there are no ears to hear we can’t change that. I still think it’s worth it to keep trying until you can’t!
The first thing to keep in mind is that people typically have the same goals: low crime, jobs that pay a living wage, good education for their kids, ability to practice THEIR religion, freedom of speech. What differs is how different factions want to define and achieve those goals.
IF you have the mental and emotional capacity (I don’t right now), engage in a conversation. Ask why they think what ICE is doing is OK. Try to find examples in their lives: How would you feel if ICE came for your next door Ukrainian neighbor? Be curious. People often think that what’s happening in other parts of the world or country won’t happen in their neighborhood. NIMBY blinders.
If you can actively listen (without getting angry or having a stroke), practice the empathy on them you wish they had.
I can really relate! I have many friends who are in this position. I am trying to seperate the political from my relationships. Obviously some may be so toxic that you have to walk away but I am trying to listen and when given the opportunity to ask questions and hopefully discuss things. I don’t want to dissolve friendships because of politics. Many of my friends just don’t talk about it and trying to respect that. It’s complex but I I feel like I will lose any opportunity to speak if I just ride them off completely. Just my thoughts.
The people I know who fall under this far right influence tend to only get their news from media outlets like Fox News and Newsmax. There's this emotional/culture comfort of some sorts for them to watch these program that "appear" to be delivering news stories as they are, but we know they are opinion driven. If you go to the homepage of Fox News website you will see the headlines are very different from mainstream media and independent sources. Some top stories don't even appear but ones that do are written in a way to trigger outrage and fear. I don't have the answer with how we move forward but I continuously think about how I want to be remembered and if my great-great grandkids ask what Nonna was like? I hope I can live up to be an ancestor they are proud of.
This is so difficult. I have that chilling feeling that being connected to maga means condoning modern day Nazis.
I am continuing to pay my cleaning people though they are too afraid to leave their homes. I am donating to food shelves and volunteering for food deliveries. I think people are wildly underreacting to what is happening in MN. I'm having very little patience for people who "don't follow politics".
Thank you for more doing, less watching. It’s good to get ideas of what people are doing to protect their own mental health, but I love to hear what people are doing to make a difference. If we all pick a small task it makes a big difference.
I was told last week to stop sharing the atrocities that were happening, that I should just be quiet because this is what the people voted for. This came from someone that I thought shared the same values and beliefs that I did. Made me so sad but it also encouraged me to continue standing up for human decency!
I took a big step and called my MAGA parents to understand what they’ve been hearing and to listen in hopes of figuring out how I can shine a light for them and show them what is really happening in the world. We didn’t argue, just talked. I heard what my dad was parroting and was able to respectfully challenge him and call out the fallacies he is being fed. In my situation, I truly don’t think they understand that they aren’t being given the whole story and they don’t know how to see through the propaganda. My goal wasn’t to change his mind, but to make him say with his own mouth what HE supported, not his party. And many of the things he started saying, he walked back. It wasn’t our last conversation. I plan to have more.
For me, I have decided that I want to be a bridge builder between sides whenever possible. I have babies at home. I can’t go out to protests. But I can make a phone call to people I love who are being misguided and keep those lines of communication open. I want to be a safe place for the changing of minds. It does us no good to hate or to dehumanize those that support this immorality, then we become just like them. It’s really hard to do, but these people are too important for me to let them be led astray so easily.
I spent yesterday writing to my federal and state reps and senators to let them know my thoughts. With everything that is happening, it was hard to focus on one thing, so I focused on ICE.
I also found a great website billtrack50.com which shows you bills sponsored, status of the bill, and how they voted. So I was able to speak about specific bills my state senator sponsored to let him know I don’t agree.
I made sure to thank them all for their service, even the guy I didn’t agree with.
Thank you. I like hearing what people are actively “doing” even if they are small.
I am trying to limit my intake of social media and the news! Sticking to reliable news sources and taking breaks! It’s not good for me to see and hear the 24/7 bombardments of the same thing all day long! I want to be a steward of my time and my emotions so I can do the next right things where I am in my own spheres. I can’t do everything but small things matter! Looking for beauty wherever I can, gratitude shifts my mind from the crazy! As a person of faith, despite all the darkness I know it’s my responsibility to care about the suffering and cruelty that’s going on. To do whatever I can to push back against it! It grieves me to see many using scripture to justify the things we are seeing in our country! This is not the teachings of Christ! Grateful for the work being done by many who really care about Democracy doing things I cannot do but can support!! Thankful for this space where we can add light to a lot of darkness! Working together even if we never know each other we all play a part!
Avoiding mainstream news and only following trusted sources, taking breaks for nature and exercise, focusing on simple pleasures, and supporting local causes as able.
Burn Order by Rachel Maddow about the internment of Japanese Americans in WW2 has been so
instructive for me.
Get my information from independent media, mostly Substack, but even that has some questionable information. Also check out, AP, Politico, The Atlantic, Reuters. When it is all too much to take, I disconnect and exercise, read fiction, ring handbells at church, and volunteer at a refugee organization.