If you haven’t come to terms with the current political climate yet, I understand. The problem with having social media, not to mention a president who is always on twitter, is that wherever we go, we are overwhelmed with news of a new executive order, controversial tweet, or hate crime. It’s a never-ending cycle of—honestly, trauma. It’s exhausting, and looking at the next four years can be daunting to say the least. But there is an upside to this debacle, vinas. In times like this, it is really important to take care and take action.
TAKE CARE
I mean this—take care of yourself and others. A lot of us got this feeling of waking up, right? That is a good thing because we’re more aware, concerned, and #woke. While it is critical to be woke and connected in critical times, you’re probably (unintentionally) overwhelming yourself. If you go on Facebook or Twitter and your feed is flooded with political crap that makes you question all humanity, especially the humanity within your own friends list—you will soon lose your mind. So honestly, disconnect! Put your phone away because I promise you for the next three and a half years, there will be click-bait-y articles everyday, everywhere you look that will just make you angry. And as fired up as I am to RESIST, being angry all the time is tiring and frankly, unhealthy. So, I actually have started meditating—not for too long because the whole work-school-life-internship-friends-more-work thing kind of takes up most of my time. But before bed, I will just sit with my eyes closed and focus on nothing but my breathing for five minutes. I know five minutes is nothing, but it actually helps! Whatever self-care means to you, whether it be a bath, a walk or a quick breathing exercise, it’s the time to get to it!
TAKE ACTION
I say to take care of yourself first, because it is necessary to be healthy and well in order to be proactive! But if recent events have shown us anything, it is that we need to take care of those around us and attack measures that threatens any aspect of our communities. Taking action means more than a hashtag or sharing the next article you read. Yes, that is all helpful—but you can do more. Seriously get involved in your community, whether that means volunteering an hour a week or organizing a group of activists! You know that anger that comes from reading anything nowadays? Yeah, use that anger-but don’t merely be reactive, be proactive! It may seem daunting to take actual time away from your normal life to dedicate to others, but you’ll be shocked at how empowering it is!
This perpetual political climate we’re living in can leave many of us feeling helpless and frustrated. But it’s extremely important to know that we have the power to change that feeling. No, we may not be able to change the gross policies being written right now, but we can change the day-to-day lives of ourselves and of the people in our communities. The time to cope has passed—it’s now time to take care and take action!
How will you take action? Tell us in the comments!
VINAZINE 