"Yep. Here we are." That's what a friend of mine texted in a group chat this morning around 9am.
I had woken up naturally three hours before at 6am, grabbed my iPhone right away (something I hardly ever do), sat down to pee, and saw the election results.
Can't say I was surprised, but I was disappointed. My energy literally went down the toilet, which is funny cuz I was sitting on it LOL. But still, just ugh.
Whether you're in the United States or not, if you're reading this email, you probably already know how it turned out.
And no matter who you did or didn't vote for, I just want you to know that I love and respect you so much and I'm so glad you're in my community <3
For me personally, it would've been a dream come true to see the first ever mixed-race female candidate become president.
As a little girl, I grew up not really knowing which ethnicity box to color in on standardized tests in school. White? Hispanic? Why can't I select both?
But when I went to the polls to vote early last week, I knew exactly what box to select. I even got a little teary-eyed thinking of how far we've come to have a woman like Kamala on the ballot.
And while that's true, I also want to acknowledge how far we still have to go. Not just in the "progress" sense, whatever you classify that as, but also with loving and understanding one another even when, make that especially when, it's difficult.
I feel lots of judgment, hatred, and tension swirling in the air, which is totally valid and also not necessarily the energy that we need to heal the division that we've witnessed in this country.
So if you have friends or family who voted in a way that surprises you, what I encourage you to do this week and for the next few years and probably for the rest of your lives is to remain curious.
Maybe you can experiment with higher levels of radical understanding and send loving energy even to the people that you don't agree with.
If you feel like that love and understanding isn't ever reciprocated, you can choose to protect yourself and your energy in these moments...
But if you see a possibility to melt some of these invisible divisions away, see what can happen with the people that could be receptive to that.
When you take it a step further and have difficult, yet loving, conversations, it becomes even more possible for everyone involved to heal.
And I knew that, no matter what way the country decided to go, there was still going to be so much healing to do together.
So how do we do that? With conversations, hugs, laughter. With moments of joy and moments of understanding.
Why? Because love melts fear. Love melts hate. Love energy is what we need most. For ourselves and for the world around us.
Last night when the results started rolling in, I was walking home with a girl who lives in my building after I took her workout class, which made me super sweaty!
She told me that 2016 was such a shock because she was (and still is) in her own little liberal bubble.
Moments like these are invitations to step out of the bubble, even if it's just a little bit, to really try to love and understand 'the other side.'
The truth is that most of us want what we think is best for ourselves and our community. Heart-opening discussions around how that looks for each of us is where a lot of magic could lie.
Who knows, maybe those difficult conversations could end with gratitude instead of vitriol!
Regardless, the main goal for me in the coming weeks is to stay grounded and stay loving, first towards myself and then towards others.
And if you have no idea how to talk to certain people about what just happened, or how to have healing conversations around it, then go watch this video.
In it, I share...
- Three tips to make difficult conversations a little easier.
- How to establish honest, loving, and clear dialogue with your loved ones.
- Ways to deepen your communication skills in every relationship.
Watch it on YouTube and remember that the general trend of humanity over the centuries, with its many peaks and valleys, has slowly moved us closer to more peace, love, and liberty.
That will probably continue to be the case despite our present-day circumstances.
I love you so much <3
Kimberly
If you’re new here, welcome! I’m so glad we’re connected! Just so you know, I send weekly love letters like this to my email list and sometimes don’t post it up on my website until months after. If you don’t wanna miss a thing, click here to sign up for that inbox party! There’s a few free welcome gifts on the inside :)