I’ve already mailed in my ballot, and I volunteered to be a poll worker (though they haven’t gotten in touch). With a week (maybe two) to go before we get the result, I feel caught in a limbo. It feels more important to me to be copying my important documents and organizing go-bags to be ready for a crisis than it does to do anything at work. I also recognize that that is probably a reaction to stress and anxiety and isn’t helping me. That said, I’m part of many groups that the right-wing hates and is openly threatening, so feeling unsafe doesn’t feel unreasonable either.
How are you all holding up out there? And tips for me to deal with this better?
This is the way.
This is actually a big message in the dharma of the Buddha.
I used to be much more into meditation and reading Buddhist literature. I reflect on that time in my life as being happier and more peaceful (I was also exercising a lot more then too). I’ve started going to a yoga class a few times a month, but I wish I had an easier time getting back into the rest of it.
But the fact that it’s not easy is a good thing. The hard thing to do is usually the right thing to do. Dealing with the negative hardship is a positive experience in the end, and avoiding the negative hardship is worse than the hardship itself.
And classical Stoicism. (Not the “don’t talk much” kind, but the roman philosopher kind.)
Letting go of things you can’t control like death also was a big tenet of the Jedi order, which I guess isn’t that surprising considering where Lucas was pulling sources from
If I could move stuff with my mind, I would convert to Jedism today.
Pretty sure I’d go full Sith. I’m not super big on hate, but if I could move things and influence people with my mind I’m under no illusions that I would use that power for good.