Bless Donald Trump for helping us remember who we are

All evil and harm that is done in the world is done because we forget who we are.  We forget that we are one.  We forget that when we harm someone else, we are harming ourselves.  The extreme harm of separating refugee children from their parents (the accurate term is refugees, not immigrants, these families are by and large running for their lives from Central America) and scattering them across the country, is heartbreaking and terrifying.  Yet, it is not particularly new.  

Tragedies like this took place while Barack Obama was president of the United States.  Tragedies like these take place all over the world.  They are all heartbreaking and terrifying but they don't all seem to call us to action like this one.  What is bringing us to remembrance of who we are is President Donald Trump.  Yesterday The Washington Post reported that Under Trump Americans are Becoming More Supportive of Immigration -- and this is based on a poll run before the latest outrage.  

In spiritual terms, President Trump is a projection of the dark shadow of Americans.  We say we are a law-abiding people, but we flout the law when we can.  We say we are a place where freedom flourishes, but we try to suppress the free press when we disagree with it.  We say all people are created equal, but then it turns out we really mean only the people who look like us and worship like us, and maybe only men.

Deficiencies of the electoral college notwithstanding, Donald Trump could not have been elected president and could not continue to inspire fierce loyalty in his base if he did not speak to our dark unexamined, unadmitted craven xenophobia.  

Get this: when I say "our" I do not mean Republicans or even that large subset of Republicans that are rabid supporters of the president.  I mean all of us.  

So while President Trump is, by his naked appeals to our shadow side, awakening our remembering of who we are, the call is also to remember ALL of whom we are.  If 30% of the American public wants to wall off the country, instigate stark consequences for those who try to enter our borders and deny women control of their bodies, then 30% of our collective consciousness wants the same.

A call to action these days is "Resist!" -- yet it is a spiritual law that what you resist persists.  Just as we need to remember that we are love and that we are one and that those refugees are us, and every person (and animal and tree) on the planet is us, we also need to love and cradle and whisper to those parts of us that we have rejected and shoved into the shadows.

In his various wonderful Youtube talks, the enlightened being Matt Kahn reminds us that when a toddler or young child has a tantrum our most loving action can be to wrap them in our arms, preventing them from hurting themselves or others, and just let them scream and scream until they are ready to behave.  And we can whisper to them/ourselves, says Matt, "I am forgiven, forgiven I am.  You are forgiven, forgiven you are.  I am love, love I am.  You are love, love you are" over and over and over until we know who we are.

And so I ask what energy, space and consciousness can I and my body be to let go of all I am holding against Donald Trump and his supporters and to embrace those parts of myself that have wanted to exclude or hurt others who are different than I am?  And anything that doesn't allow it, can I destroy and uncreate that all now in all parts of my consciousness, every lifetime, all directions, all layers, all times, no matter what?

And then I can remember who I am.  And I can go out and work and support and vote for a world that works for everyone.