Well
it’s been a week since Election Day. My Facebook
has been flooded with disbelief, anguish, depression, anger, terror, blame, shame, defiance, vow of resistance, plots and
schemes. All undergirded
by a profound melancholy that is
not just going away. There is no Band-Aid or balm for the
boo-boo on our souls.
Now
come the head shrinkers, the touchy-feely two bit New Age philosophers,
and well-meaning relatives with Hallmark hearts. They are, every damned one of them there to help and heal you.
And
now come the pop advice peddlers in
the newspapers and other media.
Don’t worry, they say, the sun will rise and shine. Go about your lives. No
matter what happens it will not fall on you. It’s just politics and you will be
just fine.
Good advice, I suppose,
unless you are one of the others or
your messy life is somehow tainted
and entwined with them….
How to Survive
Post-Election
2016
Head down, eyes
locked forward,
ears plugged, nose pinched,
one foot put down before the other
along the painted line.
Cancel the
newspaper, avoid the news,
purge the Facebook and Twitter,
block the malcontents.
Hum quietly to
yourself
but be careful of the tune,
speak only of the weather, sports,
and sitcoms.
Go to work, go
shopping, go to the game,
go about your life,
mind your business
as if nothing had happened.
Ignore the
strange smoke
from that chimney over there.
Be a Good
American.
—Patrick
Murfin
