“Anxiously Awaiting”—these words came to me in meditation today (November 4, 2020). There’s no declared winner in the Presidential Election at this time. Ballots by the millions are still being counted in several states. Apparently, the House remains in Democratic control, although seats have been lost to Republicans. It also appears that the Senate will remain in Republican control.
So, this state of awaiting anxiously, in this instance, refers to what others will need to do. Secretaries of State and people in charge of the ballot counting---volunteers throughout the nation who are all involved in this huge task. But I also thought about it more in terms of what I would do---or any single person---not exclusively related to this hugely important situation at hand.
The process of anxiously awaiting could happen in the very second before a writer’s pen touches the paper; before a diver pushes off the platform toward the water below; before a soprano releases that first gush of air that becomes that most glorious High C; before Phillippe Petit places his weight on the taut wire high above the busy street below; before a hang glider drops off the peak into thin air; before a conductor somehow manages to create the magic of the entire orchestra hitting that first note in perfect unison.
Anxiously awaiting isn’t a passive activity, even if it appears to be. It’s one loaded with promise, expectation, intensity, and awareness all brought to bare on one thing---one moment---that will gather all senses, all attention, all experience, all preparation for the purpose of starting something important---something challenging---something that has seemed beyond our ability or comfort zone or just beyond.
In terms of this Presidential election, we’ve already done our part---we’ve voted. It seems that more of us have voted in this election than in many other years---and that’s great. But now all we can do is wait---which is in itself anxiety provoking.
But if we choose to challenge ourselves beyond the ballot box, we could continue some of the conversations we’ve probably been engaged in recently around racism, white supremacy, inclusion, equity especially in access to health care, housing, child care, education, jobs. We could remain engaged or get engaged with people who don’t look like us. We could just start in our neighborhood, our community---to turn our anxiety into action.