Politics, power and energetic alchemy
how to navigate election season with more peace
Today I want to talk about politics, power and energetic alchemy.
I’m not going to tell you who to vote for (and I’m not going to tell you how I’m voting) but I will share my perspective on how to find more peace and empowerment during a season that for most people is super stressful and disheartening.
Astro insight: This isn’t just about the next two weeks. We are entering charged astrology for the rest of the year. And zooming out wider, we’re in a multi year period of transition on a societal level, meaning there is going to be conflict. There is going to be collapse. There is going to be challenge. And there is also something beautiful and new on the other side.
I want to start by naming some unhelpful energy dynamics that I’ve seen at play.
1 - Making the election a moral issue and trying to influence others decisions with shame.
I find it concerning that many have made the election a moral issue, shaming the other side for their choices.
“Dictator or Democracy, that is the choice”
“Don’t be weird, vote Harris”
I understand that especially Donald Trump activates rage, trauma, and other big feelings in a lot of people. Rightfully so, but shaming someone for voting the way they want to vote is incredibly un-democratic.
2 - Trying to transmute or transcend hate with more hate.
Most political posts I’ve seen are fueled by hate. Full stop. But you know what’s wild to see? It feels like the left is throwing the worst of it.
Different situation but connected: so many of my Jewish friends have been attacked online specifically by liberals in the last year. These are not people who are even talking about politics or supporting war, simply expressing the challenge and grief of being Jewish right now. I didn’t believe it until I experienced it for myself. This is a post for another day, but can’t you see the problem here?
If we meet hate with more hate, we are only purporting the problem.
Rage can be righteously channeled for good but most people don’t actually know how to do this and end up simply spreading hate. This is true energy alchemy and if you’re interested in exploring this more personally please reach out.
3 - Blaming and separating one side into the problem and one into the solution. Also, making the politicians the heroes.
Our modern political landscape (at least here in the US) is built off of this: we make one side the problem and the side we are on the solution. We make the opposing politician a bad guy and our politician the hero.
No politician is coming to save you / us. The problem isn’t Donald Trump and the Republicans, or Kamala Harris and the Democrats, the problem is the system.
Neither candidate nor the other people in “power” pulling strings behind the scenes wants you to see this. They want us to stay divided, to stay angry, to stay committed to our identity politics. That’s how they exercise control.
And honestly, I think most people aren’t ready to see that our systems are deeply flawed and no longer serving us. It’s uncomfortable and confronting.
It’s easier to point a finger at the “other side” and say they are the problem then to look at the system and say “we (collectively) created this problem and we need to solve it from the ground up”
It’s easier to blame a party or figure head than it is to build a new system from the ground up.
These dynamics of shame, hate and blaming / separating ourselves are keeping us from realizing we as individuals actually have a lot of power (and a lot of work to do).
We are in a period of collapse. I don’t say this in a doomsday sort of way, but there can be a lot of peace that comes from accepting that our systems and structures (and politicians!) are no longer serving us.
Old ways will fall, new ways will be formed.
There is so much power and hope and possibility and connectedness that comes when we realize: We vote every single day with our time, with our energy, with our dollar. We do have the power to change our world.
We can try to save a sinking ship, shouting at the “other side” as the ship goes down…
Or we can jump off (aka unhook ourselves from the unhelpful dynamics that are keeping us small), swim to shore, and focus on what we are building that’s new.
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If you have felt caught up (or completely jaded) by this election...
If you often feel helpless when it comes to world issues…
If you’re wondering where to channel your energy to actually make a difference…
I offer you these reflection questions:
What are your personal and family values?
How are your daily choices (where you spend your time, your money, your energy) in or out alignment with those values?
How can you embody more of the change you wish to see in the world?
This is how I live and lead. Not from a place of “I’ve got it all figured out”, and not from a place of “Someone else please show me the way”, but from a place of curiosity and continued conversation: How am I being the change I wish to see in the world?
This is not about perfection. I shared on Instagram stories that I made my son’s Halloween costume. Not because I was trying to budget, but because ordering a brand new, plastic or polyester costume from a big box store didn’t feel in alignment with my values.
So I DIYed. Yes, I still bought a cotton t-shirt from Amazon, but instead of giving Amazon $40 or whatever the new costume would cost, I gave them $15 for a t-shirt he will wear not just a few times but for the next several months.
It may seem insignificant (and I get to Amazon the $25 difference is) but it’s the energetics that’s important. I took back my power. I made a choice that was more aligned for me and for our family.
And that my friends is how I believe we change the world.
Focus on what you are building, focus on how you are already creating a positive ripple effect, a healing legacy. Focus on where you can make a real impact. Focus on being the change inside your family, your community, your business.
We underestimate our power and our power to change the world thru our daily actions, not just by who we vote for once every four years.
It’s time for that to shift.
As always, I love hearing how these words land with you. Let’s continue the conversation in the comments (and to the point of this article, no hate, shame or blame will be allowed here).
xxo
Emily