Today, I write …
Today, I do not want to write about…
Today I do not want to write about him or his grand sense of self. Or how civilians are being arrested in broad daylight because they hurt a grown man’s feelings or assembled or asked valid questions or simply… existed.
And I certainly don’t want to write about how journalists’ homes are being searched, and how dissenters from various strata of the government and public discourse (even social media influencers!) are being intimidated and violated and detained under the guise of ‘investigations’ for doing their work, their jobs that are steadily being outlawed.
And I don’t want to write about all the books being banned by a handful of people who need to read those books most, or about how people choose not to read books anymore like it’s a badge of honor as AI dictates their belief systems for them.
No, I don’t want to write about any of that today.
Today I want to write about the monks trekking across the US for peace, and all the churches and scores of atheists and agnostics welcoming them and cheering them on in rural areas of the South, along with their peace dog, Aloka, because everyone is starved for human connection and a moment of true safety and stillness.
I want to write about strangers helping one another and all the people keeping their neighbors safe. And all the people coming to the US to help document all the things going on, for the world record.
I also want to write about all the people standing up and speaking out against the injustices they see. But even more, I want to write about all the people healing the sick and housing the unhoused, never stopping to consider the reasons why they’re doing what they’re doing because all they see is a fellow human in need, which prompts them to act.
I want to write about all the things connecting us because they outnumber all the things that divide us… if that’s what we seek.
So, are you paying attention to the stories we write? The ones we believe are worth writing about? As those are the stories that will determine not only who we are but who we will be.
One of the most dangerous things we can do is blame everything happening on one individual, over and over and over again, and never relent. Even Hitler had an army and a core group of people who designed and carried out his plans, as did the slaveholders in the South and their governments.
It only takes a small, coordinated group of people to try and change the human condition, the human narrative, for better or worse. So, how about we don’t choose the worse option?
Seriously, I am tired of writing about him and exhausted from reading what other people write about him, all day every day. He’s just one person, but everyone is writing about him like he is immortal or inevitable or acting all alone. Even he will die eventually, just like the rest of us. What then? That’s what we should be writing about: What comes next?
NO. I don’t want to write about him, ever again, if I had the chance, and didn’t feel …
Instead, I want to write about all the beautiful humans that are falling through the cracks, those he’s trying to erase and demonize, those brave and average souls who need to be remembered. And maybe a few paragraphs about those coercing him and egging him on— especially those who have published a decades-long project for what he’s mindlessly carrying out to boost his own ego.
Today I want to write about how what we do, what we write, today, determines our tomorrows. And all the things that could go right, or at least a little better, if we conjure the will to write them into being.
I want to write about what’s before my eyes, in other words. And all the beauty and human compassion I see amid unnecessary suffering, which I suppose all suffering is (unnecessary). Otherwise, it wouldn’t be suffering, if it wasn’t, somewhere deep down, a choice.
At least for one single day, just for today, can we not write about him? Can we write about anything else instead? Anything else that can shift our collective narrative toward something we would want to read together in the future? Even if that future only includes tomorrow.
What about you? What is something you don’t want to write about today? Rather, what would you prefer to write about instead? You have two options. Complete one of the following sentences:
Today, I want to write about …
Today, I don’t want to write about…
© This work is not available for artificial intelligence (AI) training. All Rights Reserved by K.E. Creighton; Creighton’s Compositions LLC.
Want to express your appreciation for this post?
My writing and I are fueled by loyal readers, caffeine, and kind words, so I appreciate any support you can offer that keeps me writing. Thank you so much!
