I’ve felt lost much of this week, seemingly headed into parts of life unknown, dark and scary. The headlines offer little useful direction, are in fact distracting, causing me to miss the signposts I know are there: my family and community, people in general, and, even with changes in climate, the green world around and the blue sky above.
Where I am not lost and know with certainty is that Donald Trump is a person who over and over has said and done things—not just reported by “fake news” but undeniably documented—that will harm many in my families. I have family with significant disabilities, many who are various shades of black or brown, others who are non-binary and LGBTQ+, nearly all of whom, while civil, are also very outspoken about what they believe.
And in a world where a handful of men have more wealth than all the rest of us on the planet, many struggle, some desperately, simply to make ends meet. In short these are people who do not fit into the rosy pictures painted by Project 2025 of what a Trump administration believes an American family should look like. Women’s rights, public education, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI), are just a few of the life supports that would be kicked to the side.
When we talk about the environment on which we all rely, even though it is changing in ways impossible to imagine, the impact of another Trump term, again as he has said may times and detailed in Project 2025, would be devastating. Essentially the wealthy would be given the key to the world’s resources with little regard to the consequences for the Planet. It would be, essentially,, the past two centuries on steroids—the end of life for much and many.
Yes, it is depressing but being lost also clarifies the need to again find my way and that way, at least the first few steps are always clear. I grew up with parents who exemplified the “Golden Rule” which has variations in many religions and cultures: “Do unto others that which you would have them do unto you.” So today I will look to the very clear signs leading me onward into a world that can work for all of us, one that begins with “loving my neighbor” and treating all as I want to be treated. It is crystal clear, given the firehose of lies, the world being shown in Milwaukee this week at the Republican National Convention is not a world in which my family—or the Planet—will grow and thrive.
I’ll look to you, my friends, and my family to remind me of what is true. Please share this with your family and friends with my hope that, together we can all find our way forward.
Still Learning To See 
Thank you for your TRUE WORDS and I hope many are really thinking about them. Why would anyone want these men leading our country? I feel so sorry for our younger generation. Is this what we really want to do or leave to them.
Seeing that long line of tables in the photo from Georgia made me think of the Barre Street neighborhood’s potlucks behind the Senior Center. They could probably use more tables. The Capitol City band concerts are another lovely way to connect.
We were able to mount a campaign for voting rights and a protest to the Vietnam war. Ronald Reagan realized that if he threw multiple issues at us at once, it would splinter us. It has been thus ever since. I wonder if people all over the country are beginning to realize that climate change is real as they experience disaster after disaster. Maybe we will come together to save the planet. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter what happens to our democracy.