Dear President Trump, It’s late and I’m toast from trying to keep our sick dog from licking up everything on the floor, which is what he does when he’s sick. He’s only about 30 pounds, but he’s basically all muscle and when he’s writhing and trying to get down it’s really hard to contain him. … Continue reading A rough day and some extra flowers
Love and Compassion
Unpacking radical empathy (Part 4)
Dear President Trump, For some reason I didn’t include the phrase “radical empathy” in my letter to you the other day when I told you about Susan Lanzoni’s WP piece about how white people’s failure of empathy significantly contributes to racial bias and racism. I did use it to title several of the letters in … Continue reading Unpacking radical empathy (Part 4)
Radical empathy and lack thereof (Part 2)
Dear President Trump, When someone gets hurt in your presence of do you involuntarily wince and feel a zing almost as though it was you who was injured? I honestly don’t know whether narcissistic sociopaths have that capacity, but I rather doubt it so maybe you don’t know what it’s like to feel your stomach … Continue reading Radical empathy and lack thereof (Part 2)
Radical empathy (Part 1)
Dear President Trump, I suppose it doesn’t matter too, too much where I start, no matter what angle one approaches it from, it’s sad, infuriating, and overwhelming. But it does feel important to get the story straight and to tell it reasonably well since it’s one that so many of us white people have a … Continue reading Radical empathy (Part 1)
Beloved
Dear President Trump, Today was a churchy sort of day starting with soul choir practice at 9. We’re working on a beautiful song called “MLK” and the last few lines have been playing on repeat in my head for two weeks now, mostly just because of how they sound. I don’t really understand the significance … Continue reading Beloved
A worthy pipe dream
Dear President Trump, I’ve told you before how I say a series of loving-kindness prayers for a bunch of people, including you, every morning towards the end of my walk or run. It keeps me steady and helps me recharge my supply of positivity and kindness, which really does seem like it could be finite … Continue reading A worthy pipe dream
A fresh breeze
Dear President Trump, Can you stand all this positivity emanating from the House? It’s like a fresh breeze blew in yesterday morning and pushed aside the fetid toxic air that’s been choking the country the last two years. There’s so much to take in already and there are new things popping up every few minutes, … Continue reading A fresh breeze
You could have visited after all
Dear President Trump, There wasn’t a peep about it this morning, but I’m sure the news outlets will tell us later whether you decided to stick it out in Washington DC in a pouty austerity move or went on to Mar-a-Lago so as not to disappoint the patrons who are paying dearly for a few … Continue reading You could have visited after all
Connection and care
Dear President Trump, Last night our minister’s Christmas Eve meditation was entitled “Discomfort and Joy.” I wish you could have heard it; it was really beautiful and the message is one I think many of us desperately need to hear and abide. The main point is that having to contend with discomfort makes space for … Continue reading Connection and care
Another December day
Dear President Trump, The sad, scary, enraging stuff I wrote to you about yesterday hasn’t gone away and isn’t going away anytime soon; kids are still contemplating suicide today and young adults are still concluding that it doesn’t make sense to have children. Nothing has substantively changed – you’re still lurching from one manufactured crisis … Continue reading Another December day
Daily Trump Letters 