Darkest of days

"I made an educated wish." - Deadpool

 I know the sun came up somewhere today, but not here. It is bleak, it is dark, it rains intermittently, like hope, it comes in waves but is then gone.  There was no sun today, there was no joy, there was no hope. What happened? Why does America hate women?  Is it fear?  At first, I thought it was over before it started.  There would be no chance to elect a woman, a woman of color. No way. As staunch a feminist as I am, I see reality every day as a caregiver of two nonverbal severely disabled kids in this sometimes cruel world. But I swear for that brief second,  I felt it, did you? The tide turning, a skip in my step, a glimmer in a young girl's eyes, a better tomorrow with choices and dignity and respect.   I didn't imagine it. It was there. Or was it?  I must have been living in in an alternate universe, one of equality, kindness, and respect. 

Today, I am reeling, I cannot fathom this truth, this reality. Yet, here we are. 

It is abundantly clear, as a nation, we hate women and minorities, and the LGBTQ+ community. That has become unsparingly obvious. But what about the truly vulnerable?  We have room in our hearts for them surely? The elderly, the disabled, the mentally impaired?  Nope. Or maybe it's not hate. Maybe it's far worse, a blatant disregard for not just their rights, but their very lives. Disdain and indifference for the "other".  No regard for them at all.  No humanity because, we just don't consider them. They are less than human. But, but, but... the cost of eggs. 

I always believed at the end of the day, women held the cards. We kept the house standing. We are the backbone, the strength, the reason it all doesn't come tumbling down. We finally had it, within grasp, but it was not to be.

Of course, we have to go on. But before then, I  fear we will reap what we have sown with this awful man.  We have chosen the worst of the worst and now women and children will suffer for it. On the course for a more perfect union we have stumbled backwards, decades backwards. Those of us that are Gen X bear some responsibility for this as we were gifted rights that we did not think to fight for until it was too late. Now our granddaughters, daughters, nieces, friends, will suffer. Many have already died because of archaic laws that Dobbs triggered. I am so sorry for this truth. 

Of course, I know better days are to come, but right now it is merely the calm before the storm, and so let's prepare and get ready, for this will be the fight of our lives. I believe it will be worth it. 

Thank you Madam Vice President, you fought the good fight and in a fair world you would have won.  But damn, no one told us life would be fair.