Even as we prepare for the serious business of changing our society, this is still a good time to take a deep breath, relax our shoulders and gut, and savor this moment.
Uncertainty tends to bring fear and catastrophic thinking. Our nervous system urgently puts forward worst case possibilities that we might need to be ready to protect ourselves from. We use real experience from the past as evidence for these scenarios. It’s exhausting. It’s stressful. We tighten up and isolate and find it hard to breathe.
What about when we have a sudden shift to hope and optimism? We take in a deep breath and let down our guard. AND we still have the momentum of worry and the after affects of hunkering down to “get through”. We feel the highs and we might have a crash too. That’s natural after that elevated levels of adrenaline and cortisol for weeks and months and perhaps years.
What are you most heartened by this week?
It might be the opposite of what was most discouraging leading up to the election. Corruption. Cowardice. The mind boggling depths to which Trump would go and people would not be able or willing to challenge. The intractability that made it seem like there was no hope for accountability and change.
A new group of younger progressive candidates will be sworn into office in January - ninetyeight in the House and sixteen in the Senate. Democrat control of both houses will limit Trump’s power. This is a major shake up. People voted for change. Most of us have seen the polls of how people voted grouped by gender and race. White men are the only people with a slim majority (53%) who voted Republican. Black women voted Democrat 94% and made significant progress in elected representation.
"I learned long ago that winning doesn't always mean you get the prize. Sometimes you get progress, and that counts." Stacey Abrams
The election was a collective breakthrough for diversity. Black women drove the momentum as a core voting bloc and secured unprecedented seating in the Senate, alongside historic firsts for Indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+, and Muslim lawmakers. This feels more representative of who we are.
We can take a moment to breathe and enjoy a break from the relentless worry. There is a lot of work ahead of us, and we can afford to pause and let down our shoulders and enjoy the power and optimism of the moment.
Over the next several months, a lot of changes will happen. Some of these affect all of us. Prices on gas and groceries may go down which will mean immediate relief on our wallets. Some are more specific to our situation. As a Canadian, I look forward to a lessening of hostility and fear of US aggression against Canada. As a human being with a heart, I feel hopeful there will be more justice in the US.
What specifically excites you?
What bold steps might you take? As the level of fear goes down, confidence will rise. Maybe there is something you’ve been holding back on in your personal life because your energy has mostly be taken up in trying to survive. As our level of alarm eases, what might you bring in that excites you? Visualize that! Spend some time with it and feel it in your body. Work out some practical steps to move toward the juiciness of living in a new way.
We do need to balance being practical. Even with the big changes that have already happened, there is uncertainty. It is hard to shift systems and there are layers and layers of governance. Many of those layers also experienced a shift from Republican to Democrat in the mid terms.
Take a deep breath, relax your shoulders and gut, and enjoy!
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