What a week, to put it mildly.
I remember feeling this same way in 2016, but I wasn’t doing a daily livestream, so I don’t have four photos that depict the emotional roller coaster this week has been for so many of us.
My Wednesday Spark Moments video went viral (at least for me). More than 18,000 people have seen it, in part because it was shared more than 160 times, mostly by complete strangers.
I guess I hit a nerve.
But here’s the thing: while the great majority of the more than 100 comments are positive, I am experiencing the other side’s thoughts, too. And boy do they feel free to share exactly who they are. Wow—there’s real hatred in our country, and it’s unnerving to have some of it pointed directly at me.
But it is also empowering.
My anger, the collective anger of so many, has enormous energy and force behind it…if we chose to do something with it.
All too often, we rage into a vacuum of like-minded people—FOX News or MSNBC, anyone? And who or what does that serve?
So my question to you today, in Spark Moments and here is: what are you going to do with your emotions and the energy they are producing?
If you’re devastated, like I am, what are you going to do to improve the lives of your family, neighbors and community?
If you are celebrating, what are you going to do to ensure that at-risk members of your family and community are safe from the worst of your compatriots?
Be devastated and angry—I sure as hell am. But then do something to counter this bullet-train to the bottom of humanity’s worst nature.
I’m in talks to develop something larger than my Spark Moments livestream because what I believe is true is that we are largely in the boat we’re in because we’re all suffering from extreme isolation and lack of community. With the mass exodus of people attending houses of worship, the decline of service and social clubs, all our time online, the effects of COVID, which we are still feeling, and more, we have never been more simultaneously connected and alone.
For my part, I don’t need to talk to my fellow liberals about how terrible this is. Rather, I need to create a platform for civil discourse that lifts up our better natures and finds our commonalities from across much of the political spectrum.
I refuse to give in to the dumbing down of America, and if that makes me an “East Coast Elite” who happens to have been born and live in one of the reddest states in the nation, then so be it.
I know I’m not alone in craving intellectual conversation that fosters more questions, feeds our curiosity, challenges our assumptions and grows our capacity to find our common humanity.
I believe that every element of my life has been preparing me for this moment: CEO and arts activist; single mom in income-based housing; humanities podcast host; wife who journeyed through the hell of addiction with her now smiling-happy-alcoholic-in-recovery husband; actor and writer barely making ends meet; middle-class, white, privileged woman.
This is all unfolding quickly because it feels extremely time sensitive. But I want to be careful to use this opportunity wisely, so it might be a bit before I’m ready to launch anything new. But do hold on: I’m serious about using my voice to raise a ruckus, find some common ground and disrupt the new and dangerous status quo.
What about you? What are you going to do that will move the needle in your corner of the world? Not everyone needs to do something big and dramatic, but we are all called to do something.
If you’re feeling isolated or want to connect with others around these issues, leave a comment or reach out directly. Let’s use this space to find common ground and explore ways to strengthen our communities together. And if this post resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone else who might need to read it. Together, we can grow a community dedicated to empathy, connection and real change.
