From the global to the local
Five years ago I wote a post called “That’s so 2020!” which referred, in part, to Donald Trump’s failed attempt to gain a second term as POTUS. It was such a relief on a global and personal scale. More on the personal response later.
Somehow 45 became 47 and, here we are, again faced with the very worse of greed and selfishness presented by the President of the USA.
“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
Dr. Martin Luther King
In five years, so much has changed with the mainstream media and social media. Note these sources occupy a new middle-ground technologically, neither politically-owned MSM nor personal SM.
Here’s a positive read from Zeteo…
“Here’s What You Can Do to Keep Democracy Alive During Trump’s Second Term
Authoritarians thrive on fear and hopelessness. Here are 17 things you can do to not give into such negativity.”
Edited list of how can do your part to keep democracy alive in 2025 – and face the future with courage and resolve:
1. Be Brave
2. Cultivate Empathy
3. Stay Focused
4. Be Proactive
5. Foster Real Connections
6. Avoid Brain Rot and Lies
7. Share a Positive Message When Possible
8. Demand Accountability
9. Engage Young People
10. Don’t Help Trump
11. Don’t Argue with His Supporters
12. Remember: This Is a Regime
13. Learn from History
14. Support Artists and the Arts
15. Take Care of Yourself
16. Celebrate Victories
17. Persist!
Persistence is the best resistance.
Source:
https://zeteo.com/p/what-to-do-keep-democracy-alive-trump-presidency
If you don’t know Zeteo check them out for a different news organisation.
Here’s another view…
“Through a glass darkly: Trump Redux
He’s back but nobody really knows what he is going to do.”
https://alexmassie.substack.com/p/through-a-glass-darkly-trump-redux
Bullet Journal
Avoid the overwhelm…
So, what can we do about it? The personal is political. Developing out of a guided writing group I have started using the techniques of bullet journaling. It’s partly to get more organised, and productive, and partly to be more reflective.
We also started a nature journal using a new book by Melissa Harrison. It has prose for each month and space for adding our observations. I calculate that it will allow space for four or five years so there will be emphasis on the changing seasons.
Bullet Journaling, devised by Ryder Carroll, has its own method and terminology with products to support the idea. It even offers (expensive) online courses, and even seems over-promotional or evangelical, but I received enough of the idea to get started from signing up to a free regular email.
Write a better life
See https://bulletjournal.com/
Bujo provides simple tools to help you gently transform the way you work, think, feel and live, one page at a time.
I have always been a keeper of lists, a forward diary and a day-by-day notebook. I say it is a substitute for a decent memory. The method has refined my practice – and added a component of reflection which is where the writing comes in. I don’t go for the flowery, pictoral approach of some journalers.
The BuJo purpose is defined as “clarity, organisation, productivity and mindfulness” or as stated above, to avoid the overwhelm. (Incidentally, the BBC News has a weekly mailing called The Upbeat which speaks for itself.) My starting point and declared intention is guilt-free task efficiency. I drew a hexagon, of course, surrounded by an outer circle of activities / sources or inputs. These point to one or more of the six-sides which are in the nature of archive, repository or storage.
- Journal / nature journal
- Bluesky / Threads (wider social media)
- Facebook (closer social media)
- www.pannage.com (these web pages and blog)
- Analogue archive (boxes of stuff, now de-junking)
- Flickr (photo albums and groups)
Activities
These are fairly fluid and inter-connected, and super-privileged in not actually involving paid-work at this time.
- Holidays and visits (RSPB, National Trust, The Tate)
- Sport (golf and indoor bowls)
- Hobbies (photography, water colours, garden)
- Social connections (family and friends)
- Media (books, television, The i Paper, Zeteo, Byline Times, NewsNow)
- Music (Spotify, Radio 2 (blues, folk, 70s), live concerts FITB, BFW))
- Natural and urban landscapes (volunteering: Singleton Environment Centre, Friends of Singleton Lake, NHS Walk and Talk)
Fourth dimension
The BuJo time-scale is, essentially, daily, monthly and six-months. The past is confined to reflection either in a blogpost or reinvested in the future planning method.
Will BuJo work?
It’s been a serendipitous slide from the writing group into a monthly meet-up of those interested in journaling. The social aspect has been a plus. We meet informally with good coffee at the Low Key Tap Room in Ashford on the last Saturday of the month.
In Trump-speak he is “competing to win”. Some of us are just happy to take part and regard that as winning.
Let’s see if we can manage the ravages of 2025 in ways that suit us best.
Please sign-up to receive further blogposts to find out.
Is it something that would work for you? Be sure to let us know.