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barack obama

On Elections and Voting

November 4, 2012 By Michele Woodward Leave a Comment

As of this coming Tuesday, I will have voted in nine U.S. Presidential elections. I cast my first vote in 1980 and haven’t missed a polling day since.

I also worked at the national level on four of those campaigns, on the road doing advance work – going ahead of the candidate and developing rallies, speeches and appearances.

So, it’s probably no surprise to you that I am a political junkie – I watch the coverage semi-compulsively. I talk about trends and developments. I read tea leaves.

And, boy, has this year has been different from others in my experience. It’s been so vitriolic. Mean-spirited. Unkind.

Yes, the political junkie in me knows that we have a history of divisive and ugly campaigns. In 1884, the major campaign slogan of Republican James G. Blaine referred to opponent Grover Cleveland’s apparent fathering of a child outside of marriage – “Ma, Ma, Where’s my Pa?” Cleveland, in return, campaigned on: “Blaine, Blaine, The Continental Liar From The State of Maine.”

Thomas Jefferson referred to John Adams as “hideous hermaphroditical character” in the 1800 campaign, and Adams retorted with a slur on Jefferson, “a mean-spirited, low-lived fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw, sired by a Virginia mulatto father.”

Makes “apology tour” and “flip-flopper” seem rather tame.

But aren’t you tired of it? Exhausted? Limp with campaign fatigue?

Is this really what we Americans want?

I don’t think so. I think what we really want is to come together.

On September 12, 2001, Washington, DC, had changed. Walking down the street, everyone made eye contact. Folks connected with one another in grief and disbelief while in line for coffee, or when buying the newspaper. But we also shared a solid resolve that we could pull together and emerge stronger as a nation. I was very proud of our President, George W. Bush, when he stood on that debris pile in New York with a megaphone and spoke from the heart.

I felt like an American, united with other Americans.

In 2004, I was asked to help organize the State Funeral of President Reagan. As the motorcade slowly snaked from the National Cathedral to Andrews Air Force Base, I watched as men and women in suits, and construction workers in dusty boots, and poor women holding the hands of small children stood at attention with their hands over their hearts as the procession went by. Regardless of age, or race, or gender – people came together to honor one man’s service to the country. I was in tears about two blocks into the ride, moved by the outpouring of goodwill by we Americans.

In 2006, Gerald R. Ford died and I was called to help pull together his State Funeral. There was a different tone and feel to this event, mirroring President Ford’s down-to-earth style. Yet, thousands of Americans stood in line in the cold to pay their respects in the Rotunda of the Capitol. And the Ford family was there throughout, shaking hands and thanking each and every visitor. Mrs. Ford took a drive through her old neighborhood of Alexandria, Virginia, and people spontaneously lined the streets to wave and greet her.

Once again, I was moved to see that we Americans not only love to come together,but need to come together, around something that unites us.

In 2008, with the election of Barack Obama, I saw the same thing. There was eye contact, there were smiles and nods – even if you didn’t know who had voted which way. There was a sense that America had once again united and was stronger as a result.

Last week, with the horrible destruction wrought by Hurricane Sandy, I saw the same thing – people in New Jersey and New York and Connecticut, helping one another. Those of us in other places doing what we could to help those in need.

We came together, as Americans at our best.

Which is why I cannot for the life of me understand the forces that would divide us.

We are such a stronger country when we come together. We are better people when we are one, and realize the interconnectedness between the Iowa farmer and the Massachusetts WIC recipient. Between the Seattle software engineer and the teacher in Mississippi.

On Tuesday, I will vote, and I urge you to vote, too. Vote for the candidate of your preference, for President, for Senate, for House, for Governor, for city and local officials. Truly, I don’t care for whom you vote.

By voting, you will be engaging in something very dear – the right of Americans to come together. To be Americans. Together.

And, knowing me, I will be moved to tears one more time knowing that a worker on Alaska’s North Slope will be casting her ballot along with a real estate manager in Florida and a social worker in Montana and a business owner in Virginia and an at-home mom in Indiana and a rancher in Oklahoma. All coming out to exercise the most American of our rights. The right to vote.

 

Filed Under: Authenticity, Clarity, Happier Living, Managing Change, Uncategorized Tagged With: barack obama, campaign, Elections, George W. Bush, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, voting

Letter To My Children

January 18, 2009 By Michele Woodward Leave a Comment


Dear Munroe and Grace, I saw that President-elect Obama has written a letter to his daughters, expressing his hopes for their lives, and for the lives of all American children.

So, I thought I’d take a minute to write you and tell you what I hope for your lives, too.

First, I wish you a long and healthy life. Fortunately, you’ve got great genes going for you — but there are things you need to do to help yourself along. Pay attention to your nutrition, because what you put into your body fuels what you’re able to do in your life. Consciously taking in things that are good for you is a huge step toward taking loving care of yourself. When you take in good food, you set the tone for other good things in your life. And always move your body. Feel your muscles move under your skin. Dance, walk, hike, run, swim. It feels good, sure, but it also intimately reminds you of your own inherent strength and power.

Which brings me to my second wish for you — I wish you happy and healthy partnerships and friendships. I once read this piece of advice: “If you wouldn’t say it to your daughter, don’t say it to your son.” So, let me tell both of you the same thing: becoming intimately involved with anyone — allowing them access to your mind and your body — is the greatest gift you can give. Make sure the people you choose deserve your gift. And pay attention, too, to the friends you bring closest to you — find people whose honor and integrity match yours. Finally, remember that neediness often masquerades as love, but it’s not love — it’s just a false mask of love. Serving someone else’s chronic neediness is not what’s best for your life. Plus, it’s downright exhausting.

What’s best for you is love. As you know, I like Henri Nouwen’s definition of love. “Making a safe place for another person to be fully themselves.” And my third wish for you is that you have a life full of love. To get that, though, you first have to make a safe place for you to be yourself. That means not beating yourself up every minute of every day. It means loving yourself when you make a mistake, or say something incredibly stupid, or act really thoughtlessly. It means making space for an apology, and making up for your shortcomings.

When you love yourself first, you are able to fully love others.

And let me clarify — I’m not suggesting overweening, narcissistic self love. Narcissists see people as objects, not individuals, and lack the ability to empathize with others. That’s the opposite of my wish for you! To love yourself, it’s vital to see people clearly for who they are, with all their human frailties and strengths, and to appreciate their human struggles — and share their burdens and joys where you can.

You’ve already faced challenges in your young lives and I hope you look back on those experiences with a sense of pride and accomplishment in your own resilience. You will face hard times in your life — it’s a fact of life. But you can make the hard times easier by looking back at past challenges and realizing you made it through before… and you will again. Every single time.

When you’re forty years old, I hope you’re a good partner, and a good parent. I hope you’re a good friend, and a good neighbor. I hope you have a job you like and that helps you pay your bills, and that you put some money away for a rainy day. I hope you vote in every election, and that you work to make your community a better place. When you’re forty, I hope you make time to read books that excite you and to have conversations that inspire you.

But most of all, I hope you’re happy. And my best advice on how to be happy is this: Live fully in the knowledge that, in each moment, you are going to make the best possible decisions you can possibly make — so you can live with few regrets.

Your lives are infinitely precious to me, but your futures are yours to craft. Create them with care, and with love.

Just as you were created. Just as you were raised. Just as you are loved. Now, and always.

— Love, Mom

Filed Under: Happier Living Tagged With: advice, barack obama, hope, kids, letter to my children, life coach

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