Today the Electoral College selected Donald Trump as our next President. At the same time, Syrian refugees are flooding out of now fallen Aleppo, while those left in the city are slaughtered by a corrupt regime backed by the same thugs who interjected themselves in our election, a truck purposefully plowed into innocent people shopping for the holidays in Berlin, and the Russian Ambassador to Turkey was assisnated. Our new “leader” is sparking conflict with the strongest rising power on the planet (China), just as my family is here adopting our beautiful daughter from this very vibrant country. We are at an inflection point. Our time is one of massive shifts in the global balance of power, and not in America’s favor. How are we, as Americans spending it? Not well.
Most are entertained by the latest football game, celebrity gossip, or lamenting the fall of our democracy. Even I spent the last week writing up an article about how much money I saved using credit card bonuses for travel, which I will not link to here. We are finding our escape because the reality of our time is too difficult to confront, but that is just what we must do. We are living in an inflection point where our actions each day can mean the difference between a brutal future, and one we’d prefer. If this is the case, how do we shift our daily actions toward progress, rather than despair drowned in distraction?
I’ll tell you how, we reengage with each other at the personal level. Rather than follow what is becoming increasingly fake news, let’s talk to one another. Let’s seek out friendships, fellowships, and community. Reengage with our religion, reengage with our civic organizations, go for a hike, volunteer, get out and do something. Make a positive change in the world at any level you can.
Only by doing something, anything, positive can we shift this feeling of despair. From there we can build ourselves and our self-esteem stronger again. Only through engagement with others can we understand the power of community. Only through action can we again feel our contribution to our time.
I ask you to share this call to action. Get up. Get away from your screen refresh to find out the latest tweet from some sociopath. Go pick up garbage at your local park. Go meet a new group of people at an event. Go, Go, Go! Do something, anything, to get your body, your mind, and your community moving. Then, as a community, we can address the bigger issues of our time.
Our time is all we have. Let’s use what we have of it to do some good. Who’s with me?
Jeremy