…and life goes on

I was in California during the recent US election, including some days before and after Election Day. I felt such intensity going into the elections, then there was the result that surprised so many people and then some kind of relief that it was over and then, a kind of void. Of course, many people felt it was a disaster and most certainly many more were very pleased with the results. The media and social media were full of emotion.

But I didn’t experience any kind of drama nor too much emotion in the places I visited.

Because life goes on.

Getting on with life

I visited several people and places, one of which is shown in this post’s picture. I snapped this as I felt it represented the way I saw people just enjoying life. This photo is from a community in Southern California where mostly retirees live in sunny warm climes during the winter months. They play golf, pickleball, and tennis, they drive around in golf carts, go to the gym and play games or have drinks together in the evening. It’s a wintertime summer camp for the young at heart. It’s a dreamlife for many.

In my couple of days there, I detected some undercurrents of frustration and anger about the election as well as some signs of triumph and gloating. But it didn’t often come to the surface. Especially not outside of one’s own private space.

I have to say I was surprised by what I interpreted as dispassion. But it probably wasn’t that at all. It’s likely more about civility and survival. There seemed to be some unwritten rules about not airing one’s views in public – no, it would be way too divisive for that.

Is this normal?

When you think about our long history, humans have lived through so many tough times, and we survived. We have a deep capacity to be adaptable and to survive even against the odds. Our ancestors have lived through wars, pandemics, poverty and a myriad of other hardships that we might not even be able to imagine. Colleagues and friends have lived through tyranny and unfair treatment and yet they can still find positivity and love in their lives.

Think of how we experience our current weather disasters related as a nuisance rather than a harbinger of total climate-change disaster. Think about how we managed ourselves through COVID, lockdown and such a fast change of what is normal in how we live and work. As a result of more work being online, I was able to move to a different country!

So life goes on, we dust ourselves off and forge ahead. And maybe the most important thing is to keep asking ourselves, what is the best life I can live now?

Lessons learned by being a studentWhat limits me as a coach?