February 4, 2025 - A Bright Spot

I don't need to belabor the point of how hellish the first weeks of the second Trump administration has been. My friends (and I) are afraid of losing their jobs, worried about facing further discrimination (myself included), scared that if they try to travel they'll face repercussions (a fear trifecta). I didn't post a blog last month because so much has been happening that it didn't even cross my mind to do so. I'm looking into the future and seeing a dark hallway with no lights on. I'm forced onward and I have some ideas of what I'll find, but I ultimately don't know what's going to appear out of the gloom.

But there is something keeping me buoyed. My fiancee and I got married last month.

We scheduled the wedding for October before the election had happened. Afterward, we expedited the paperwork so that it was signed, sealed, delivered before inauguration day. We invited only our sisters as witnesses and my sister-in-law's husband to officiate. We said our vows on a snowy January evening in a forested state park that my wife and I frequent, the sun setting behind a clouded over gray sky and all quiet except for us. It wasn't what we had planned at all whene we got engaged. But it was still beautiful and still ours. The official copies of our marriage license just arrive yesterday. Even though we've joked about being married in our hearts and minds long before this, the validation of seeing our names on a state document certifying it cannot be understated. No matter what happens, in good time and bad, in sickness and in health, we're a package deal.

And it's not just my wife keeping my head above water. My connections to others keeps me from going full doomer. From friends to family to colleagues.

We also poked our heads into our local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America this past weekend. It's my first time dipping my toes into an organization like this, so I felt a little out of my element. But it made me feel a little less crazy to see a group of organized people acknowledging what is happening and remind us that we don't have to stand for it. There are things we can do to protect ourselves and others. Having something like that to do instead of spinning my wheels with no direction feels like the play as we go into the next four years.

I know not everyone has the luxury of being able to organize and get involved in a cause. If it comes to paying your bills or being able to organize, I'm not going to fault you for trying to just survive. But if you can get involved somewhere, I strongly encourage you to do so. You don't have to do something about everything all at once. That's a fast track to burning out. Just pick one thing you care about to devote your time. I have a couple friends who are very vocal about their political sentiments and shout about revolution behind closed doors but can't be bothered to use their PTO to go to a protest that falls on a weekday. And I don't know, I just can't stomach that being me.

This whole thing has been a long way of saying, don't let the bastards get you down. Don't comply in advance. Your joy and voice will shore up the people around you and make it possible to carry on. No man is an island and we'll get through it together. Stay frosty, gang.