I'm With You

I don’t have any other hobbies or skills besides my day job to distract myself right now, so here I am writing to you, because it’s the only thing I know I can do at this moment that won’t instantly make me turn into a million pieces or fill me with more hurt, anger, and despair.

I won’t fill anyone with false optimism or hope. I don’t have it right now to give. But what I can say is that I am with you.

We've been dealt a terrible hand. Half the country sold our humanity for however much more money they think they’ll make from this next administration. Many people are lost, deeply misled, and living in a completely distorted reality that is totally separate from any semblance of truth. They are gleeful right now, and I pity them. At best, they have been promised something that doesn’t exist, and at worst, they have been promised something that can only exist through cruelty to others.

The billionaires that bought the president-elect and the people infected with greed - they are so poor, all they have is money. They will never know the true kindness of people who can love you for who you are. They will never appreciate the beauty of artists and their creations. They will never understand the natural beauty of a world that doesn’t have a price tag on everything.

The people who love the horrible things the president-elect says or excuse them entirely, they have hearts that I will never understand - because my heart beats with love. They will never know that their cold fear of people who are different than them can be replaced with curiosity and warmth. I pity them, too.

I understand this universe does not have a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. At any point, an asteroid can come hurtling down, or the super volcano at Yellowstone can erupt. With that, I have to accept that this is my one life, and this is the timeline I’ve been placed in. At some point, I will have to pick myself up and find joy again in something. I will have to find enough peace to pray for my safety and the safety of those who will need it most. I will have to fight like I’ve never fought before. Because as Cyndi Lauper once said (albeit in an entirely different context) “it ain’t over til it’s over, and it ain’t over til you give in, and you don’t have to give in.” I think it’s important to hear and repeat this to yourself with Cyndi’s thick Queens accent (maybe I do have some room for levity in my soul today). I won’t ever give in.

Today, I will sit some more in grief. I will rest. I will continue to be reminded of the good people in my life who stood on the side of what is right. Because there was a right side in this election. I will honor my immigrant ancestors and never give up on the promise of America, as flawed as this country has always been.

I will tell you, each of you, I am with you.