The worst part about not knowing what to effectively do or say in the face of extreme gaslighting is that we are supposed to be nice about being rendered speechless in the face of the daily atrocities of unspeakable acts of violence or violence-adjacent behavior. That is a shame because I have limits. The tactic is always the same from the loudmouths. Apply massive fear for the longest-lasting hysteria. It is really very simple, and it is strangely repeated by legacy media. It is hard to know where to draw the line. But I will tell you: I draw lines because it is better to put trash talk in a box where it can do less damage. As time goes on, it does seem that we are mirroring a global disaster-risk reduction survival exercise, but since it is filled with bursts of schadenfreude, I’m going to go with that. There is a steady outcome for failure because these loudmouths don’t understand law or order. The “big” people want laws for thee but not for me, and one-third of Americans agree with being lopsided. Don’t ask me why? I’ll never know. I will go to my grave wondering how the “little” people could make such a ghastly error. Unfortunately, it happens over and over and over again. This is why I believe we are in an evolution, and if we are, we should at least get good at understanding the mess we are in.
The good news about messes is that they can always be straightened up. Take a bit of advice from me, an old mom. Everyone hates cleaning up, so it is best to do it quickly and calmly at the crucial moment when we have to take action to motivate ourselves and build momentum. Any task is solvable when we take direct action seriously. I’ve honed the skills to overcome difficulties in my daily practice as part of this evolution process. They are all linked to various art proficiencies, so if you want a shortcut, study art, dance, or music. Those talents are the best teachers. But since life is too busy, I’ll tell you and apologize if it seems anticlimactic because my trick is that I tell myself, “get ‘r done.”
While living through the messiness of our current timeline’s evolution, I entertain myself with live performances, museum exhibits, and films. I landed in a lovely 2025 film called “It Was Just an Accident” written and directed by Jafar Panahi. It was an Iranian film about the people who survived political persecution and the self-doubt that arises when vengeance is the immediate motivation, but it turned into a ludicrous French farce. The humanity displayed in the film was touching, and there were many laugh-out-loud moments; the topic, however, was very serious. These characters were survivors who grew together, and after kidnapping the perpetrator, the main character required others to weigh in because his impulse was to murder their torturer, but he could not bring himself to do it without community support. The film reminded me of another film, “Life is Beautiful.” This1997 Italian film was directed by and starred Roberto Benigni and co-writer Vincenzo Cerami. Again, the topic was surviving the Holocaust — so very serious, but the humanity displayed by the father to protect his young son from the horrors of war and their eventual capture was awe inspiring. All of it makes me wonder if it is possible to resist fearfulness in the face of lawlessness and survive without losing our humanity or love for one another? I often find inspiration in art and these two films were able to direct my attention away from the hedious crimes that were enacted and towards the feeling of caring that bind us together. Fortuneately, laughter is still the best medicine.
