Dealing with “interesting times”

Wow, I woke up the other morning—on a lovely Arizona autumn day—to see my usual online political news sources filled with doom and gloom about the U.S. election. It’s REALLY hard to not get sucked in. But then I realized that four unconnected thoughts I‘ve had recently were, in fact, connected to each other and to the current “interesting times.” This post grew out of that realization. What I say here may not jibe with your thinking or beliefs. If it doesn’t, maybe consider it food for thought .…

First, I observed that my obsessive consumption of online political news was partly due to my ego in addition to wanting to be an informed U.S./global citizen and voter (which is still true). I’m a bit embarrassed to admit my ego likes to sound impressively informed and astute in political discussions with others. But I realized that garnering more information will not change my political perspective—I know what’s at stake in the 2024 election, and I know how I’m going to vote. That’s not going to change with any “Breaking News” story.

Second, I had the thought that there’s a human body metaphor for the current chaos: over the years I’ve sometimes felt a point of skin irritation which evolved into a subcutaneous bump, then a painful abscess. Applying hot compresses to it caused the formation of a pus-filled “head” that built and built until it burst wide open enabling the nasty purulence to be expelled. At which point the abscess was on the road to healing—often with the help of a topical antibiotic. Currently, the purulence of the political/cultural situation is building and building—both nationally and globally—approaching the point of bursting wide open.

Third, I thought of the ancient saying: May you live in interesting times. Its origin is unknown but is thought to be Chinese. It’s considered to be a curse but it certainly looks cool in Chinese script:

Fourth, I realized how much I’ve talked in my posts here about “the chaos” of these challenging times we’re living in. I’ve often delineated the many aspects of the chaos—kind of rubbing our noses in it.

These four thoughts led me to a series of questions:

• What if consuming more news not only doesn’t change my perspective and beliefs but also does next to nothing to resolve the issues while it, concurrently, results in upsetting me and increasing the negative energy I broadcast out into the Universe and “feeding” the atmosphere of fear? (And fear is the opposite of love and Oneness.)
• What if Humanity’s long-festering wounds like racism are, indeed, coming to a head, ready to burst—and ready to begin to be healed?
• What if May you live in interesting times is not a curse but rather an opportunity to make a difference?
• And what if it’s time to stop dwelling on the chaos and instead move beyond it, rise above it? What if it’s time to implement another approach to resolve it?

And that’s when the dots connected for me. Maybe another approach looks like this—which isn’t necessarily new in this blog but feels ever more urgent to me:

• Rather than rubbing dirt into Humanity’s wounds with our fear and anger, instead we can concentrate on being the “antibiotic” by actually living Oneness—shifting to concentrating more on doing what I posit in these blog posts are Oneness practices: Forgiveness, Compassion, Connection, and Kindness to ourselves and our fellow human beings. And, at least in my belief system, trusting that there’s a Divine Plan unfolding and, because it is Divine, a positive outcome is ultimately inevitable.
• Rather than putting out a lot of negative energy into the Universe with our fear and anger, instead we radiate positive energy into the mix by doing something that brings us joy. Finding the answer to the question “What feeds my soul”—and then doing that. (My thanks to Elizabeth in my Zoom writing group for this thought-provoking question.)
• And rather than viewing the “interesting times” chaos as a curse, instead we view it as a HUGE opportunity to move Humanity many steps forward in our evolution.

Yet, to me it feels irresponsible to not watch the news to be an informed, responsible citizen and voter. It’s challenging to do joyful things when there’s so much angst and suffering within and around me. And it’s hard to believe that I—one person—can make the difference that can heal Humanity’s wounds.

But what if a lot of “one persons” make a difference so big it does indeed change the direction of the Titanic—of Humanity’s Path? And what if changing our approach to the chaos doesn’t have to be cold turkey—all or nothing? What if we do the best we can because, truly, every little bit helps? …

• We limit—but not necessarily eliminate—our exposure to the news.
• When we see news photos or video of suffering—like the wars or hurricane aftermath—instead of just spiraling down into upset for them or fear of such a disaster happening to us, rather we immediately say a prayer or send good ju-ju (or whatever you want to call positive, loving energy) to those affected. (And donate to one of the many aid organizations.)
• When we see a news video of a particularly malicious politician or other mendacious prominent persons or groups in the news spewing hate, instead of our sliding into anger or fear, rather we practice Compassion for the underlying fear and/or pain that probably drives them to act out—and send healing energy to them. (Or at least mute their speeches or political commercials to lessen our reaction and the negative energy we broadcast out into the Universe.)
• We look for—and take advantage of—opportunities to practice Kindness.

Yikes, a lot to ponder. But also ponder this: the history of humankind is filled with tremendous tragedies and significant challenges, and yet the planet has continued to revolve, and Humanity has survived. Over the past couple centuries there have been numerous, powerful threats to democracy and global peace. And yet the threats were overcome—and we survived—because regular people stepped up and made it so. They fought and died in wars. They were persecuted, prosecuted, injured and even killed in the pursuit of “unalienable rights.” They joined together to help each other in time of need and to lend a hand up to those less fortunate.

I’ve heard and read variations of “Democracy is never guaranteed. Each generation must preserve it, defend it, and fight for it.” Now it’s our turn. But in addition to fighting to preserve democracy, I believe we have an even greater, unique opportunity that maybe wasn’t available to those who came before us: to finally begin to heal Humanity’s wounds vs. just letting them fester.

I’ve asked these two questions in previous posts here:

Who do we want to be as a nation?

Who do we want to be as Humanity?

What are you going to do to answer these questions—to contribute to the endeavor of moving Humanity forward?

As I’ve said before, if you think I’m preaching through a bullhorn from atop my soapbox, you’re damn right I am. With every negative thing that happens, the need for countering, positive energy geometrically increases. There’s simply too much at stake right now to be complacent, to sit back and let other people do what needs to be done, or to claim you’re doing or have done enough.

I urge you to not spiral down into despair but rather take action—even if all you can do is lessen broadcasting out negative energy and, instead, radiate positive energy: do what brings you joy and “feeds your soul,” do something positive in your community, and take advantage of every opportunity to practice Compassion, Kindness, and Connection with the people around you. Because I really do believe that EVERY little bit helps.

And yes, VOTE!!!!!

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P.S. Sometimes it’s hard to know what to do or where to start. Online articles abound, including the following. Ready, get set, go! Do!

100 Ways to Make a Difference in Your Community

100 Ways to Help Others Even If You’re Not Rich

60 Ways to Better Your Community