I’ve been thinking about the Election of 1860 lately.
Crazy, right?
Who spends time thinking about how Abraham Lincoln was elected?
Well, I do.
That election was about incredible national change. People were divided about who should be president. So much so that there were 4 men who received electoral votes. And no one had over 50% of the vote. (FYI: Abe didn’t even make it to 40%.)
Heck, Abraham Lincoln wasn’t even on the ballot in many of the southern states. He was essentially a third party candidate because the Republican party was new and pushing for anti-slavery, which scared the south.
Today we stand in another monumental time.
One that considers how we deal with the earth, how we think about poverty and wealth, how we treat women and people of color, and so much more.
We are living during such a significant time that there are many tribes from around the world insisting that we protect the water and the earth in North Dakota (& elsewhere).
We are living with incredible acts of violence and tremendous outpourings of kindness.
We find ourselves divided as a nation and divided within ourselves.
How can we remedy such angst?
The antidote to division is to recognize the love and sacredness within ourselves and our world. And to heal the broken spaces within.
Where do you feel a monumental shift inside you? Where do you need to treat yourself with love and kindness?
Try this. Draw a line down the middle of your paper. On the left side, write down 10 ways you are mean to yourself. And on the right side, come up with 10 strategies for being kind to yourself. It could be the exact opposite of what was in the other column. For example, instead of saying nasty things to yourself when you do something wrong, you are going to cut yourself some slack and tell yourself that it’s okay to make mistakes.
Recognize that you are a masterpiece in the making. Heck, you’re a work of art already.
Treat yourself with more kindness than you thought possible, then see how you feel.
Go ahead, I dare you.
