Hi friends,

For the past three years, January has flown by for me and my daughters. From indoor color guard competitions to lacrosse games to theater performances, our spring has been full and fast-paced. This January has been no different, bringing the same busyness we’ve grown accustomed to. However, what I wasn’t prepared for was the rapid succession of executive orders and international instigations by the new administration.

After November’s election, I tried to cut myself off from the world for a while. Disappointment, sadness, anxiety, fear, and anger were all emotions I felt. I coped by disconnecting as much as I could. I know many of us feel this way. I’m not sure I have much hope to share, but I recently watched a Facebook live video by Heather Cox Richardson. She offered some hope and encouragement on how we can deal with the power grabs and testing of executive powers.

Although things seem dire, we must remember that we are not alone. We have each other here in this community. We have other people as part of our communities. Show up for one another. Make sure no one is alone. We must stay strong, use our voices, and rally. Tomorrow can be full of hope, but we have to fight for what is important: democracy, bodily autonomy, human rights, decency, diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, kindness, compassion, love, the freedom to be who you are, our environment and justice. We shall overcome.

Chad