I don’t know about you, but Election 2016 has left me pretty nauseated. I no longer enjoy the news, small talk, or Facebook.

It’s like the whole of politics has played Grinch for all of 2016.

I think we’d like our happiness back.

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But, if we’re honest, the darkness has been our own doing. No one rises to power by only their strength.

And so, we wait.

This weekend, however, my children had different plans. You can’t just stand around and let life happen, Mom.

So we danced to a spirited “Wheels on the Bus”, we ate fried food, and we spent hours crunching leaves beneath our heels.

Quite simply, they reminded me how to savor what I have. I think it’s easy to view our circumstances passively. We have to vote for the lesser of the two evils, right?

Except we don’t.

We all have a choice. Action or no action. Challenge or ease. To vote or not to vote.

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My decision this weekend made all the difference. My kids (okay, well, at least the verbal one) pleaded for a pile of leaves. The problem? No rake.

So we ventured to Lowe’s (in the absence of Dad) to purchase our necessary tool. We almost made it through the automatic doors before my son spotted it: the highly coveted race car shopping cart. For the first time, I let my children steer the course.

I bumped into tables, displays, and an obnoxiously large artificial Christmas tree with the unwieldy cart, but the view of my two children – my greatest life choices – playing together offered me a glimpse into an existence where only love and relationships matter.  At some point, we were all this unjaded.

Tuesday will come and pass quickly. And our lives will, too, if we’re not careful.

I have this sneaking suspicion that the kids of today will change the world of our future. And I think we should start listening more closely to the rich insights they hold.

Embrace the challenge. Wave to strangers as you pass. And, for the love of God, stop pretending you have all the answers.

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One Year Ago: The Other Side