Election Day Jitters
I am feeling anxious about this election. My mind hammers me with questions, like a desperate interrogator in charge of an impossible-to-solve case:
Will democracy prevail?
Will the election results be fair?
Will the election be stolen?
What if the current president loses but refuses to concede?
Will violence ensue?
Will we elect people who will care about all of us?
Will the rights of already marginalized folks be taken away?
I can’t answer these questions, but this doesn’t stop my inquisitor from pressing on. Even if I had answers to these questions, what good would that do?
Then I realized my mind doesn’t have questions, it has hopes and fears. I want to *know for sure* that our democracy will prevail and that we will have peace and justice.
This realization helps. I can find some ground here… Today is just today. Concerns I have about justice and equality are ever present. And I am not alone. There are millions of people who care about repairing the world and are working to do just that. I can take my place alongside them.
No matter what happens today, next week, or next year, I can commit to the following:
I will continue to fight for democracy.
I will continue to work to make sure all voices are heard and that they matter.
I will advocate for peace.
I will not stand idly by while the rights of marginalized folks are threatened.
I will do the inner work necessary to sustain these commitments.
Practicing compassion is one way to do this “inner work.” I spend so much time in my head, I often forget that taking the time to pause and connect with the rest of my body is the fuel I need to keep going. I found this video from one of my favorite mindfulness teachers—angel Kyodo williams—called “Focusing on What Matters”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7AQ_JbWNJE&feature=emb_logo. I am going to practice this on Election Day (and the days, weeks, and months following). I trust it will be a good way to stay present without allowing fear, anger, and sadness to overwhelm me.
“There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal. I know the world is bruised and bleeding, and though it is important not to ignore its pain, it is also critical to refuse to succumb to its malevolence. Like failure, chaos contains information that can lead to knowledge—even wisdom. Like art.”
--Toni Morrison (https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/no-place-self-pity-no-room-fear/)
