DEAL WITH IT!

A week or two after President Trump’s inauguration in early 2017, I confided in a friend that I was becoming more and more anxious every day over the prospect of having to live under an administration I viewed as not just morally corrupt, but downright evil.  It bothered me that America was being led by a man hell-bent on destroying everything good and noble about the country I love.  I shared my concern that Donald Trump was a wannabe dictator wrapped in sheep’s clothing, who would dupe a large segment of our population into pursuing the creation of a fascist society with “The Donald” as its deified ruler.  And then I confessed that the notion of having a sexual predator who boasted of his conquests leading the United States disturbed me greatly.

My friend responded, “Deal with it!”

There’s something about those three words that cuts my heart like a knife, and if there are three other words that can end a friendship faster, I haven’t found them yet.

“Deal with it” is a heartless retort under the best of circumstances, and it’s even crueler after the individual on the receiving end has acknowledged a vulnerability or difficulty being experienced in his or her life.

It does raise an interesting question though.  How is one to deal with the likes of Donald Trump?  Go mad?  Play dead?  Pretend he doesn’t exist, or delude one’s self into thinking the President has no power over ordinary lives?  None of those options sound healthy, or even effective for that matter.

A better answer is to find your voice.  Fight back!  Give witness to Trump’s lies and refuse to fall silent to the evil he peddles on a daily basis.  That’s how I will deal with it.  In the coming months you can count on me being heard, even if the number of my listeners can be counted on a few hands.