My cat, Lu, and I stayed up late to watch the election coverage. Don’t know if she’s Repurrrrrrblican or Democat, so she didn’t let on who she was fur. I finally asked her this outright, but she just yawned and walked to her food bowl. Guess she’s not into pawlitics.

Ok, that paragraph was just littered with bad jokes. I’m really done now …

I live on the West Coast, so I didn’t have to stay up as late as others to see how the election was playing out. This allowed me to start reading responses to the projected outcome while friends back east were still asleep. In the full light of November 6, it’s no surprise that many of us have strong feelings about this election one way or another. That’s because we care about our nation, our families, and the values we hold dear as citizens. As divided as we are, I’m still convinced we’re better together. I think we need each other for the best ideas to emerge. I’m grateful that my friends and loved ones comprise people from across the political spectrum. That diversity of perspective has, I believe, helped me better understand and engage ideas with which I may disagree. This community of different perspectives also holds me accountable to express the strengths of my views with civility while also having the intellectual honesty to address the weaknesses and problems in my views (yes, both yours and my POV have weaknesses).

So whether your candidate won or lost their bid for office, we all have work to do that transcends the divide we’ve created. While it’s easy to think about how that work should be done by the elected officials in our state and federal offices, in reality, that work starts with the person in the mirror.

When Jesus was asked what was most important about how to live in this world, he said a few things that all point in the same direction. He said to be sure that when I think I see someone else’s blind spot, I should be sure I’ve addressed mine first, so I don’t do more harm than good. (Mt 7:3-5). He also said that if I ever had a question about how I should treat someone, I could get a pretty clear answer by asking how I’d like the other person to treat me (Luke 6:31). To those who wanted to check all the boxes of piety and obedience to God and his word, Jesus boiled everything down to the idea that our love for God is practically and specifically tethered to love for our neighbor (Mark 12:30-31). Finally, to those who call Jesus their Lord, he said we’d be known as his disciples by how we love each other (John 13:35). Each of these makes God’s will clear and ensures God’s help is available, but leaves me with the choice in how I will respond. I pray each of us will look in the mirror and choose ways of health and healing.

For love of country, neighbor, and Creator, let’s get together and get to work.