We are entering what could signify one of the darkest times for Americans. Half of the country is appalled and bracing for impact, while the other half is blinded to the cliff they are about to send us all over. Many Americans have already plummeted off that cliff. The stampede continues, but it’s not too late to stop it. All we have to do is listen to one another over the noise. This requires a full stop, a pause, a moment to catch our breath, survey the scene, and come to our senses as one.
The only way we can do that is to commit to understanding each other better.
The first thing you misunderstand about me is what I wish for.
I don’t want to believe the reigning Democrat Party is packed with Communists or those with Communist ideologies. I don’t want to spend my time worrying and wondering if the next thing I say will get me blacklisted. I don’t want whatever president is in the White House to fail. I don’t want to believe that the people in power are betraying our country, and us.
Unfortunately, these fears are already being validated.
I see criminals burning buildings and businesses and attacking innocent people. I see the now president-elect celebrating these people, bailing them out of jail, and warning us that these “protests” will not stop- that they shouldn’t stop. I see the almighty Speaker of the House dismissing those actions by saying “People will do what people do.” I see both those people condemn hundreds of thousands of truly peaceful protestors as “white supremacists” just for attending a protest in which a fringe group acted separately to shock and anger the nation. I see Antifa participating in that, and unified dismissal of their presence.
I see the man we elected president besieged by false accusations that lead to ridiculous impeachments- twice! I see no accountability for the revelation that the FBI found no evidence of Russian collusion after years of time and millions of dollars in a witch hunt. I see no end to the rabid abuse of power.
I see the claims of one woman serve as a battle cry against all Trump supporters who backed his Supreme Court nominee, while the sworn affidavits of thousands of Americans who witnessed voter and election fraud are mocked and dismissed.
I see one set of rules and standards for the Left -basically, there are no rules or standards for the Left, with only one rule for the Right; Conform, comply, renounce your free thought, and bow to the Left, or we will destroy you.
You silence our voices. You slander us when we exercise our constitutional rights. You call for us to be rehabilitated, shunned, burned down, and shamed. You applaud death threats to our president and you are outraged at calls to vote you out.
I realize you’d like us to believe this is all in our best interests, but we see right through you, and it terrifies us.
Here’s the next thing you misunderstand about me:
I don’t agree with everything our president says and does. I just believe he has a love for our country and its people that overrides any flaws, and prefer an imperfect person who stands up for America’s core values to imperfect people who seek to destroy America.
This may be difficult for you to comprehend. I know you stand by everything you are told to stand by. You recite the same mantras, you echo the same hate, you regurgitate the same lies, and you lock yourselves down like good little puppets.
But I am not you.
I don’t think like you.
I don’t agree with you.
I don’t accept the same things you do.
I see through your prophets, and they are demons now barely disguised.
The kicker is- I know you think exactly the same things about me.
I know you believe Trump must be spawned from Satan himself. I know you believe I must be too, since I support him.
I know you believe your message is the only right message, and silencing our voices is what is best for all of us.
I know you believe the violence of hijacked protests is justified because the people committing it are “frustrated” and “angry.” I know you believe elevating one skin color while denouncing another cures racism, instead of actually being racist. I know you believe I don’t care about racism at all. I know you believe I am the one who is misguided and misunderstands what is really happening. I know you think I am naive or even stupid for believing this election was not honest. I know you believe I have no right to be heard or respected. I know you believe I am on the wrong side of history.
So what do we agree on?
We agree some terrible things have been happening in our country.
We agree our hearts are heavy.
We agree we want peace restored.
We agree we want to be proud to be American.
We agree we need to have faith in the people we elect, and they need to remember they work for us.
Maybe we can start there, if we all agree to listen to each other. Maybe we can build from common hopes if we recognize that no voice should be silenced just for disagreeing with you. Maybe if we stop focusing on being better than one another and start focusing on being better to one another, we can right this tilted ship.
But it is going to take both sides to come together, to listen, to learn, to compromise, to ask forgiveness and to grant forgiveness.
It is going to take putting ourselves out there, however imperfectly, and shouldering the burden of hate until the hate has run its course. If there is anything left standing then, it will take us to stand again with it.
If this interests you, let’s talk. If it triggers you, let’s talk anyway.
