It’s a crazy time here in the USA. Drama is swirling all around us. I certainly do feel it. I not only feel the collective drama, I also feel the drama within me. I seem to be bouncing from revved up, angry, irritable, and even a tad frightened to calm, grounded, and hopeful. I admit I’ve been more revved up this week than calm. I feel the storm moving through me and I’m reminded of the great Dr. Maya Angelou’s wise words,

“Every storm runs out of rain.”

Every single storm runs out of rain. Every single one. Right now, I am watching news of a tropical storm that is swirling around in the gulf threatening to strengthen to hurricane force. The spaghetti models are all over the place and are changing daily.

The same is true for the political spaghetti models. Things seem to be all over the place and people all over our nation, and perhaps the world, are in terrible pain.

What can we do? It’s easy to get caught up in trying to predict the future. The problem is that the human brain, according to brain science, is terrible at predicting the future. We’re simply no good at it.

Over 20 years ago, I went through bankruptcy. I was terrified. I thought my life was over. I felt terrible shame and fear. I imagined all manner of terrible outcomes. The truth ended up being quite different. The bankruptcy propelled me into many new and life-changing adventures. The bankruptcy storm ran out of rain. I learned many valuable lessons and there was no long term harm done.

So, here we are. The political spaghetti models are all over the place. We can get caught up in the fear of an imagined future or we can ground ourselves in the present moment and do what we can in our little spheres of influence. We can collapse or we can root deeply and grow tall.

There are 300-year-old live oaks in my yard. They have weathered countless hurricanes over the centuries yet they stand strong. Sure, they’ve lost limbs and branches over the centuries but they stand strong, deeply rooted with flexible trunks that bend with the raging winds.

We, too, can root deeply, grow tall, and bend with flexibility, compassion, wisdom, and resilience. We get to choose hate or strong compassion and kindness. I don’t mean a compassion that allows anything. I don’t mean a compassion that doesn’t hold accountable. I mean a compassion that is rooted in the good, the true, and the beautiful. A compassion that sees the humanity in everyone regardless of political affiliation, color, creed, etc. A compassion that owns our own complicity and messiness. A compassion that accepts and seeks to bring to the light our own shadows. A compassion that loves wholly and calls to accountability. A compassion that strengthens and energizes us.

As Brene Brown says,

“Don’t shrink. Don’t puff up. Stand your ground.”

These words I’m sharing with you today are words I desperately need to hear and heed. I invite us all, in Brene Brown’s words, to have a…

“Strong back. Soft front. Wild heart.”

RIFFING ON REALNESS

If you want more support to Stay Out of Drama, listen to Episode 12 of our Riffing on Realness podcast. I believe you will enjoy it and find some real gems that can help you to come back to balance even in the midst of political unrest.

You can find the podcast here on my site or on the major podcast platforms. Here’s a link to our podcast on Apple.