Tonight, many of American sit in their homes feeling pretty certain that Joe Biden will be our next president, a mild sense of relief just over the horizon. It’s sad, really. I don’t think I’ve cared about an election more in my life, but it’s been very strange because I am simply not moved by either candidate.
Right now, everyone feels stunned. What gives me pause right now is the idea that this race was even close. I really expected to see a stronger turnout for the Biden/Harris ticket. Meanwhile, the numbers I’m seeing mean that ALMOST HALF of the country is wondering how Biden could have gotten ahead. There are people on both sides whipping themselves in a lather about what a TRAVESTY THE OTHER GUY IS.
In my circus tent, I think all of us are happy that it might be almost over.
We also know that this could be just the beginning over an unprecedented battle over victory.
If I had a dollar for every time something was called unprecedented in 2020, I wouldn’t need another stimulus check. (Wocka, wocka.)
I’ve been pondering my own ennui all day. I just can’t “get it up” about these election results. In my social media, every post about self care, thinking positively, being okay seems really out of touch and tone deaf to this moment. Then, a few minutes ago, when doomscrolling, I read the phrase, “American Wounds Run Deep” and it hit me.
Nothing was solved with this election.
We are still a nation pretty evenly split down the middle, and EVERYONE, regardless of political affiliation or willing to admit it, is TRAUMATIZED.
Covid 19 was the Tsunami that trashed the world and has unearthed some very ugly realities.
It ripped the metaphorical masks off of our public personas and revealed the true priorities of many by forcing us to deal with a literal mask. Wear the mask because you care about others, or deny the mask because you(r rights) are more important….or be confused about the mask and spread misinformation….
The most trusting people have taken one of two forks in the road: paranoia or skepticism.
The trajectory of the Covid 19 spread revealed that racism is the American wound of unfathomable depth that keeps getting torn open before if can fully heal. I also believe that all of the time we spent in a holding pattern allowed us to see the gravity of how people of color are treated without distraction. Our stillness allowed us to bear witness. I suspect that had we all been expected to go to work and manage life as usual, we wouldn’t have afforded ourselves the time to process the atrocities. What happened to Armaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd was terrible, but these things were happening more than most people knew and on a regular basis before Covid 19.
Our nation has experienced more change in a single year than most people experience in a lifetime.
Sometimes, when things weren’t working prepandemic, I would want to burn it all down and start over. That is the one blessing that I’m taking from this year. I didn’t have to committ arson. Our nation went ahead an burnt itself to the ground.
Maybe now is a good time to try something completely innovative. We just might be able to come up with something more wonderful that we could have ever fathomed. I’ve got a lot of wild ideas: a new political party, penniless campaigns so that we could see the real value of an candidate and not just their financial value. Our respect for humanity leading our nation and not greed.
I guess this is how I process my trauma: aimless problem solving.
I’m not going to deign to tell you how to process our collective national trauma. Whoever you are, wherever you stand, I just want to invite you to my table. You don’t have to be, think, or feel anything to sit here.
I have no prescription for you. If you care to share anything about what is going on in your mind.heart.body, comment below or feel free to message me.
My fellow Americans, let’s just rest, take stock or our blessings, and put one foot in front of another and keep our eyes peeled for the next opportunity.
Lisa Moves 