My friends it has been almost 18 months since we last connected to ruminate with one another. I’ve wanted to share with you on many occasions but the words would not flow from my head or heart. Like an abandoned rusty water pump in a ghost town filled with tumbleweeds, my well ran dry.
I imagine my experience was similar to an artist experiencing writer’s block. That first word just would not come as I stared at the empty screen. It’s not like time stood still, my life has been filled with wonderful experiences and I’ve definitely not run out of opinions on the state of our country, but I became my own worst critic. Questioning my ability to write meaningfully and authentically shut down my creative spirit. Worry that what I had to say would be polarizing, quelled my voice. It’s taken time, but I am calling bull$#*$ on my own darn self. I know as long as I’m being honest and transparent, my words have meaning and potentially impact. Additionally, I am not writing to be popular, but to encourage discourse.
So, as summer 2024 makes its exit, I am prepared for a season of change, filled with hope and inspiration. The political horizon suddenly is not so bleak to me. I am excited and energized to have a voice and make a difference, rallying friends and family to register and to vote in the local and national races in November. I believe it’s imperative to usher in an administration who will guide us into a new era, where we respect one another for our unique contributions to this country’s success and where leaders provide opportunity for each of its citizens to achieve prosperity and be afforded true justice.
The past few years, shocking events in our nation left me feeling hopeless, disenfranchised, voiceless, and occasionally paralyzed with fear. I watched the television as our capital was overtaken by a mob, praying that our country’s leader would intervene to save the senators and vice president from those intent on inflicting harm upon them. My son and I were on a phone call when the capital was breached, each of us expressing disbelief and disappointment, asking how in this day and time, a heinous act could unfold in such an unfettered manner. We watched people who call themselves patriots trample the capital and desecrate the great edifice where our leaders govern.
I’ve wanted to share my dismay with you as justice consistently proved it was not blind or just, but the words eluded me and the page remained blank. In my period of silence, police continued killing innocent and often unarmed citizens without recourse. Our highest court callously stripped long stand laws from the books, taking away a woman’s right to govern her own body. Ending Roe vs Wade resulted in doctors fearing imprisonment for helping a woman in the throes of miscarriage, leading some to turn away patients who then suffered painful loss alone.
My well ran dry because I did not feel safe writing in a world so deeply polarized, but that stops now. Not everyone will feel compelled by my words nor will everyone agree with my opinion. However, being silent no longer feels like an option for me. Being silent is being complicit. So I am back with much to say. Stay tuned.