Just Remember The Basics

The fundamentals are pivotal, critically important to so much in life. In sports, catch the ball; take good shots; play hard until the end. In relationships, walk a mile in his / her shoes; treat others as you want to be treated; wisdom is the reward we get for a lifetime of listening.

In politics, may I suggest two fundamentals sorely missing? First, in our two-party system, it’s naive to believe for a nanosecond that either party has it all right and the other all wrong – all the time.

The beginning of healing is for each individual to start every thought regarding politics with this humble mindset: How much room is there for me to consider the possibility that is in contrast to what I now believe? How might I contribute to a respectful dialogue where the worst possible outcome is “let’s vehemently agree to disagree”, and then move on to other topics. With this mindset, the best possible outcome is “you’ve opened my eyes to a different perspective, let me sleep on that idea”. Then, again, move on to other topics.

Second, yes, at some level politics are important, and certainly more so to the oppressed than those less so, but if one thing living into my seventh decade has taught me, focusing on government, or expecting that either political party, or some ideology, will come to my rescue, come to our rescue, and make it all right, is a fruitless use of time and energy.

Rather, let’s all stay committed to investing time in improving our own character, and being an example to those we might influence, even if in some small way. Simultaneously, let’s put our stock in eternal things, after all, in the long run, what else really matters?

JD – xo