Back to Reality

After spending the past thirty-five days abroad, I landed back on American soil today. As much as I was ready to sleep in my bed and enjoy fresh California produce, I felt a somber fog fall upon me as the plane took off for home. The political reality we face in the United States made me resist returning. I respect every country's imperfections, yet seeing the world through the eyes of a foreigner made me truly appreciate the calm I felt being away from the chaos, hate, and divisiveness happening in the States.

Trump's assassination attempt felt like a shot that rang out across the globe, eliciting in me nausea not because he survived but because I feel certain that between Biden's fading lucidity and empathy for the man who started this MAGA-induced, vile vitriol, we are doomed. We are inching our way toward a destructive monarchy that will strip away vital rights for my daughters, for immigrants, and for foreign relations, to name a few. I suddenly feel like a hostage in a country that is out of control. Instead of focusing on the positive aspects of my trip, as I should be, I am filled with anxiety over the impending results of the November election.

My travels started in Ireland, where I explored the land of my great-grandmother, met a third cousin, and enjoyed several days with all my kids in a landscape seeped in green lushness and history. The following countries included Copenhagen, Berlin, Milan, Barcelona, and Paris with my older daughter, who recently graduated from college. The entire trip was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I will forever cherish.

As the Republican National Convention ramps up tonight, I can't help but wonder what life might look like if more people traveled. If we push against the idea that America needs to be made great again. If we accept the idea that other countries might have ideas worth borrowing, What if, what if, what if… the two words reverberate in my mind as I try to acclimate to the reality we are facing in this country.

All I can do is vote and hope for the best. I am watching the United States move backward as I watch my children move forward. I am so proud of them and who they have become. Interesting, kind, and conscientious. I want better than this for them. In a perfect world, I would borrow qualities from each of the places I traveled to create a middle-aisle oasis that permits people to come together. For the rhetoric to fade, and a blanket of equality to wrap this country in the calm that is so needed. But first, I'll sleep away the jet lag and welcome a new day full of appreciation for the gift of travel and perspective.