It’s Remembrance Day. At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we’ll remember the end of the First World War, mourn for all the horrors and tragedies and useless pain of war and renew our commitment to avoiding future ones. And I gotta tell you, after the US election results on Tuesday, that seems like a very important thing to think about. I’m trying really hard to believe that the Americans who elected Donald Trump were just looking for a change, not trying to tell the world that racism, hatred, and nationalism are the wave of the future. But that certainly sounds like what they were trying to tell us (and I am emphatically NOT speaking about the many online American friends of mine who’ve been shocked, grief-stricken, and terrified this past week).
Anyway, this is a day to remember the past, and also to learn from it. About tyrants and how they can rise up, even in democracies, riding on the worst of our impulses. About how othering and fear and protectionism can turn ordinary people into supporters of evil regimes, at least for a time. After Brexit and now the American election, it does kind of feel like this tide is rising in the west, and that saddens me deeply. I know those sentiments exist here in Canada as well, even if they’re not politically prominent right now. (They certainly have been in the past.) I hope I’m wrong—and if I’m right, I hope remembering the past will help us rescue the future.
Be well. Be safe. Be strong. Be brave. Be loving.
And now, because life doesn’t stop for history, it’s my Stylish sister-in-law’s birthday, we have not one but two sets of friends visiting from Cowtown, and it’s supposed to be a tropical 13C this afternoon, which in November means “Barbecue!!!” And if I don’t get to spend ALL DAY tomorrow sewing my new winter coat, I’m going to pitch a fit. But mostly, I’m going to spend this weekend living, and loving, and hoping we can all find the way to a better world.
Tanit-Isis Sews 
OMG! “Life doesn’t stop for history”! YES! Thanks. 🙂
Well said. 😞 I’m genuinely worried about the future.
Thank you for this reasoned, reasonable posting. Have a lovely time with your family.
Well said. Thank you.
Beautifully put, much love.
You are wise beyond your years and I am always proud to call you friend. Very appropriate, thought provoking words today. Looking forward to visiting with you this weekend, even if it means that you won’t be working on your coat!
Thank you. This is appreciated. I am having a hard time with this.
Consider that the left-leaning media does a very bad job of understanding the vast numbers of people who disagree with them and are quick to viciously mis-characterize them. I don’t think you need to see this as a rising tide of hatred at all, just an understandable dissatisfaction with the direction of government over the past 8 years. Many, many people voted for the guy in spite of how they felt about him personally. Be reassured — life goes on.
Great reflections. Thanks.
Well said, my dear – I so wish I knew your name! I am scared, and anyone who thinks Obama was scary ought to re-read the last 8 years of news. Sadly, the very electorate who voted for DT will be those who suffer the most, with abolishment or minimization of those social programs that are their safety nets. I am very sad and very scared.
Absolutely Cherie. It’s saddening and terrifying that what little gains have been made will take a sharply negative turn. I don’t think many who voted have the foresight or ability to project an outcome based on the data at hand.
Tanit-Isis, thank you for your lovely words. I really needed to read those. I can’t but help to recall what is relatively recent history in the grand scheme of things.
“I hope remembering the past will help us rescue the future.”
Me too.