Turmoil and Chaos

The year is 2020. The year has been filled with more turmoil and chaos than I can ever remember, and it appears that it's going to get worse instead of better. At least for the near future...

The Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) has been spreading throughout America at a rapid pace. My personal interpretation of the main reasons for this involves an incompetent, selfish leader and ignorant, selfish citizens. The United States is a land of individual freedoms and a culture of individualism. At no other time in modern history has that become so apparent. Where people would rather "fight" not to wear a mask into the grocery store than make a simple sacrifice for 30 minutes of their day to help other people stay healthy... and alive. I am not usually at a loss for words, but I have nothing sensible to say that can explain this behavior. I am disappointed in people's behavior. I am angry and frustrated. 

I am also angry and frustrated at our nation's president for how he has handled (or ignored, to be more accurate) the pandemic. The people who have followed his "lead" are the majority of folks who are demonstrating the foolish and selfish behavior mentioned above. I have watched a few press conferences where this man can't even complete a sentence related to the pandemic, let alone find the right words to say to help change the tide. But, oh! He can find all the words (made up or real) to convince people that their safety in November - when folks show up to vote - will be unquestionable. Why? So citizens are scared into not voting by mail. I fully believe the more people who choose to safely vote by mail in the next presidential election, the more likely it is that 45 will be voted out. (NOTE: I do not actively pray on a normal day, but I PRAY that we can get this man out of office!)

Ok, I'm rambling. I know! I'm just feeling the chaos of 2020 pour out of my fingertips, so the turmoil continues...

Amid the pandemic, there has been a beautiful movement to finally, truly, actually address racism in America.  The passion for change is powerful and plentiful. It is inspiring, really. And, although much of the pain that has come to light for so many of our black and brown kin is real, and really terrible, people's bravery in sharing their stories has been part of the strength of this movement. I am humbled by these stories and challenged to examine my white privilege more deeply because of them. While doing so, I have been looking to leaders across the nation for guidance on how to help support the movement. Do you know where I've seen zero leadership on eradicating racism and embracing systemic change? You guessed it! The White House has made no visible effort to acknowledge the situations emerging across this nation. When groups of white folks show up in public with their semi-automatic weapons to prove a point about freedom, 45 issues praise. When groups of people show up to peacefully protest police brutality against black and brown men, women, and children, the leader of this free nation has nothing positive to say. He continues to incite fear and anger... and I believe he does this purposefully. He's smarter than folks give him credit for - take a look at the many steps backward happening across the nation since 45 took office. Do you think that's accidental? 

In addition to the pandemic and racial justice initiatives, my list of chaos could include things like 45's attempts to prevent mail-in voting by dismantling the US Postal Service; the need for bi-partisan support in creating and passing a stimulus bill to help millions of families; the challenges of public education amid a pandemic when many students do not have access to technologies to allow them to attend school from home; a democratic presidential nominee who I did not get a say in choosing because the PA primaries are held later in the process; a safe return to school for children and adults who are shaping the future under extreme, dire circumstances; heat waves, tornadoes, hurricanes, and fires across the nation; millions of workers filing for unemployment because the economy isn't functioning normally, and jobs are being eliminated temporarily and permanently due to this stupid pandemic... 

Sigh. Big sigh.

Thank you for listening. I don't have any solutions or suggestions. For now, I just needed to write about my feelings of chaos and helplessness to make it all better.