At the beginning of the summer (2016) I offered a bi-weekly conference-call class during which I presented the idea that the present political campaign season is actually functioning as an evolutionary agent for our culture.

During the first session I offered an analogy which we’ve used throughout the summer. I shared that when my husband and I built a second story on our house in the early 90’s, because of the earthquake code in Southern California the second story had to be built on a separate foundation from the first. The builders had to open walls and dig deeply into the earth to create a foundation made of steel beams for the new floor. While the steel foundation reinforced the original foundation, it didn’t completely stabilize it. Our contractor told us that in the case of a big earthquake we should all go upstairs, as that part of the house was much safer than the lower floor – that in fact the first floor could completely deconstruct while the second floor remained relatively undamaged.

Ironically, I didn’t know at that time that Michelle Obama was going to give us the mantra, “When they go low, we go high.” But we have indeed been discussing all summer that our job is to be emotionally strong enough to function as the second story that holds our culture together while many of the structures that we believed at one time to be foundational crumble.

As the campaign comes to an end, it is now time for us to start the delicate and important work of healing and reconstructing our society. I hope that listening to this recording of one of our classes will soothe your nerves, clarify your intentions, and encourage you to join hands with us as we “go high!”

Listen and then share this with anyone and everyone you know who may need some help making it through the weekend.