Letter from Mary Anne Whelan

Post-election Comfort

For all who are distressed by the outcome of November 5, I would like to share this poem which was sent to me and which I found comforting. It was retrieved by Jesse Lambert and read at a church in Cooperstown.

Mary Anne Whelan
Cooperstown

“A Poem for Our Times”
By Venice Williams

You are awakening to the
same country you fell asleep to.
This very same country.
Pull yourself together.
And,
when you see me,
do not ask me
“What do we do now?
How do we get through the next four years?”
Some of my ancestors dealt with
at least 400 years of this
under worse conditions.

Continue to do the good work.
Continue to build bridges not walls.
Continue to lead with compassion.
Continue the demanding work
of liberation for all.
Continue to dismantle broken systems,
large and small.
Continue to set the best example
for the children.
Continue to be a vessel of nourishing joy.
Continue right where you are.
Right where you live into your days.
Do so in the name of
The Creator who expects
nothing less from each of us.
And if you are not “continuing”
ALL of the above,
in community, partnership, collaboration?
What is it you have been doing?
What are you waiting for?