WashingTina

I think we can all agree that 2020 is a colossal dumpster fire. There has been little fun or joy to be had. We’ve all been struggling to get by and find moments that are less dumpstery than usual -- to maybe find a fleeting dance with joy. But mostly, things just suck. With Thanksgiving this week, it promises to be another in a long list of major bummers. The CDC has told us that we need to stay home -- and staying home is really the only safe way to get through this holiday. My husband and I still haven’t figured out what, if anything, we’ll do to mark the day as any different from any of the others in the past nine months. Still, in the interest of perspective, I don’t think it will compare with The Worst Thanksgiving Ever.  It may be hard to believe, but staying home alone and doing nothing is actually preferable to one particular Thanksgiving my family had in the mid-90s. I was away at college in Ohio , so travel was a necessity to see my family, regardless of the holiday. Someone

As I sit here on the precipice of the most important election of my life (and, I would argue, the life of the United States), I’m struggling to process my feelings. The past four years have been a slog. Policies of the current administration, whether by legislation or executive order, have negatively affected every member of my family. And, the rhetoric and divisiveness has rippled through our society and hurt our people and our democracy. The destruction of what we hold dear has been catastrophic. And, as of today, more than 231,000 people in the U.S. have perished as a result of a mismanaged pandemic. I have been angry and scared and grief stricken. It is entirely too much to bear. We are not better off. We are not great. But we can be. This Election Day, I still believe in this country. I believe in its people. And I believe that there is hope. I’ve seen it. Even amid all the ugly, there is still a reason to believe.  Voter turnout is soaring, even as voter suppression runs rampant.