A friend of mine
once told me that I was brave when I wrote.
I am not naturally brave. Fierce at
times, but not brave. This post is for that
friend. It is my version of attempting
to be brave.
I apologize for not
returning your call – you were reaching out because you sensed a distance
between us. That means a great deal to
me.
The past few days (&
the past year) have been crazy & challenging, even without the election
fiasco. The past few months with this
election, & more importantly, things in my daily life, have been worse.
For so long, since I
was a much younger version of myself, I have believed in the concept of
civilized, respectful debate & discussion.
I always thought it should not be about convincing or changing the
other’s mind. It was designed to be
about communication.
About an exchange of
ideas.
Prior to this election,
I was able to hold onto that belief.
I fear the rules
have changed, & the rules are no longer in the spirit of the ancient philosophers. I fear that I am no longer as open-minded as
that prior version of myself.
This election, I had
to make a choice. Whether to try &
adhere to something that was core to my thought process, or remove myself from certain
facets of the discussion in order to maintain the peace that I need to take
care of my Mother.
And to still find
joy. I chose peace & joy & my
Mother.
I understand your
reasons for backing the Republican ticket.
I respect your position & your concerns. But we have different views of the role of
government, especially the Federal government.
We have agreed to
disagree.
We are still
friends. I hope we always will be.
The tone &
rhetoric of this election is divisive, on both sides of the aisle. The right & the left. It began eight years ago – but my thoughts on
that are not for this missive.
This election has
challenged so many of us to our core – to try & maintain those core beliefs
that drive us & still maintain a sense of faith, family, friendship, community & understanding.
There is one thing I
know about you, my friend. You
understand that sense.
We just can’t
discuss politics right now.
But we can drink a fine Malbec together.
Love this!
ReplyDeleteWe can discuss anything and everything and love each other until the end of our time. That's what friends are for. Standing for what's right and just in our outside worlds does not change a darn thing about what we will do for one another and how we will be there for one another. Friendship DOES transcend politics because on the local level, we must always feel that we can trust one another. Before and during this election, we live, work, play, and pray together regardless of our individual political views. You are my hero for being there for your mother. You have earned my respect, trust, and love.
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