I remember waking up in Mumbai last year and watching the election returns as they came in and being totally shocked and disappointed. That shock and disappointment is reinforced nearly every day.
When Daegan and I went for a bike trip back to my home state of Vermont this past summer we were both struck by how sad and helpless many people feel.
That said, I try not to rant or share bad news when it doesn’t have an actionable step. That just upsets people more. Instead, I will share with you the words of one of my favourite Canadian politicians of recent history, Jack Layton. By the time he died in 2011, he had left such a legacy of looking out for the common person over the years that his death resulted in a spontaneous outpouring of love. People flocked to Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, just outside city hall where there is a vast sea of concrete. They came bearing chalk wrote their goodbye messages there. And when they wore away, people wrote more – for several days in a row.
He knew he was dying and in his final days, he penned a goodbye letter to the Canadian people. It was beautiful and heartfelt. But the ending was something I try to always remember – especially when it looks pretty bleak and seems especially appropriate on the anniversary of the last US election. I hope you will also take this message to heart as you get through the next few years and beyond.
Go Outside Today 
I still can’t believe it’s already been a year! Wow
I know, right? Forget politics for a minute, how in the world can it have been a year. Remember being a kid and thinking time was going so slowly? Christmas, your birthday, or summer vacation was just never going to get here. And when summer vacation finally did get there, it stretched on for years, it seemed! Now the summer is gone in the blink of an eye.
And I feel like my son was just born yet it’s been 12 years! Crazy
I know! Mine’s 19 and the years flew by.
And we are still here and the beat goes on silently but heard. Thank you for listening.