January 20 Thoughts- In the Midst of a Dark Night For Many

Acceptance of the person as the President does not mean

• That I will be silent and acquiesce to what I disagree with,
• That I will not actively protest against what I find offensive to my values and the values of democracy and freedom, or that
• I pray for him to fail, except at those things which will harm our nation. 

Acceptance of Mr. Trump as President means

• that he was elected and I am willing to maintain my peaceful opposition to him and policies that I will work to change if I feel they are harmful.

It means that, as I have done with every President I have lived under in my 68 years, I will pray that he IS successful at

• keeping America great, 
• restoring that which may need restoring,
• supporting the least and the lost whether they be in poverty or forgotten middle-class workers, and
• that peace may reign thanks to our stance as a country to be fair to all.

Do not tell me to "Get over it!" Yet,

• I am always willing to discuss and civilly debate the issues. 
• I am willing to listen to reasoned arguments. 
• I will not denigrate those who voted for him. 
• I will maintain my acceptance of the peaceful transfer of power that we celebrated today.

I continue to wrestle with the dark night of the soul and will post the next installment of that series in the next few days. For today, I know that these may be difficult days ahead for many people. I have still not come to terms with what this can mean. As an American citizen, I rejoice in the peaceful election process. I hope we do not learn of more problems with the election than what we have already heard.

For today, I go to bed with a sense of

• weariness over the divisions, 
• compassion for those who lives may be made more difficult by the actions of the new administration, and 
• hope that we will discover ways to work together as the country we claim to be.