An Election Year Christmas Letter…from Debbie and Mike

‘Twas ‘bout two months before Christmas—it was election night,

With my voting completed, I hoped we’d all get it right.

With Bernie and Kasich not making the cut,

It was a foregone conclusion we’d end up with a nut.

Could anyone trust either Clinton or Trump?

A lying old lady and a nasty old grump.

I didn’t like either, but one would be picked,

And some would be happy, while others just ticked.

I figured that Clinton would win by a lot,

No way could Trump win…at least that’s what I thought.

And so I sat down to watch results trickle in,

But fell fast asleep before either could win.

When all of a sudden there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from my chair to see what was the matter!

It was Debbie, my wife—she was fit to be tied!

“This whole world is doomed!” Debbie, fearfully, cried.

“This whole world is doomed?” Just what could that mean?

Then I saw, “Trump Wins!”…scroll across on the screen.

Donald Trump? He’s our leader? At the TV I did stare,

At our newly elected…and that thing he calls hair!

“Debbie, calm down, everything is okay!”

That’s all I could think of…that’s all I could say.

“We’re moving to Canada—that’s where we will dwell!”

Debbie said and then added—“We’re all going to hell!”

Well, it was quite a night, but I calmed Debbie down…

Although her screams, I’m quite sure, were heard all over town.

But soon she was sleeping and still I was awake,

The news of the night, I just couldn’t shake.

Then I thought of the words I had read on a sign,

Although, I didn’t create them, I’ll claim them as mine.

They are words from the roof tops that we should all sing:

“No matter who is elected—Jesus Christ is still King!”

Yes, Jesus is King! He rules over the earth!

And we celebrate Christmas because of His birth.

The Lord came among us when Jesus was born,

To enter a world that was shattered and torn.

He led and he taught us to treat people right,

To love one another with all of our might.

To care for the sick and to tend to the needy,

To forgive one another and pray for the greedy.

He lived His whole life being loving and kind,

Giving hope to the hopeless and sight to the blind.

Even in death He showed all who is boss,

When He died for our sins as He hung from the cross.

No—not even death could keep Jesus Christ down,

As He rose three days later to reclaim His crown.

And to all of us hope He was able to bring,

We have nothing to fear with Jesus as King!

Republican—Democrat—we’re one human race,

And we’re all here, today, because of God’s loving grace.

Those things that were taught while Jesus was here,

Are things we should do every day of the year.

So please do not fret over who might have won,

Instead let’s stay focused on God’s only Son.

By following Jesus and the things that He taught,

We rise above differences this election has brought.

The fighting and calling of names are, now, done,

Let’s unite as a country and all work as one.

Let’s all work together and accept one another,

Start treating each other as sister and brother.

Well, that’s what I thought as I lay there in bed.

I should have been sleeping but wrote this, instead.

Then Debbie woke up and read what I wrote,

And what Debbie said…well, in here, I can’t quote.

She wasn’t real happy that our kids were left out,

But they’re doing just fine and of that there’s no doubt.

And, I have to admit, I got a kick in the rump,

For telling her feelings about President Trump.

But soon she agreed that everything was okay,

And with that I was happy and nothing more left to say.

Except, after reading this letter, I hope we’re two you still like,

And merry Christmas to all—from Debbie and Mike!

Impressive as always Mike! Merry Christmas to you and your family!

Clark

Nice.

Wonderful poem as always!

...As I thought about some of the sad things that have happened - not just in the United States - but all over the world, I really struggled to come up with some "highlights" for the year....

We are seeming surrounded by pain. Pain in all forms -- disease, hunger, displaced peoples driven from their homelands, gripping poverty robbing the human spirit, oppression of basic human rights and dignity, and so, so much more.  This do all exist. The exist close to us and in distant lands.

While it can be hard to accept as possible,  our perceptions may not match the arc of time. It can be useful at times to step back from seeing individual trees, some healthy, others decaying and sore above the forest -- looking at history and data, not headlines.

The world continues to improve in just about every way. Extreme poverty, child mortality, illiteracy, and global inequality are at historic lows; vaccinations, basic education, including girls, and democracy are at all-time highs:

• The number of our fellow humans on earth living in extreme poverty has dropped by over 300 million in the past 5 years.
• The growth in literacy (reading, writing, math) has added nearly 1 Billion people to the now 80% of the world's population who have basic literacy skills. 
• Global health improvements are accelerating...infant mortality is at the lowest levels ever in human history. Amazingly, individual people (people you could meet...like Bill Gates, Jimmy Carter) now have the ability of marshalling resources which eliminate entire diseases from the earth. Improving global health is no longer in the domain of impossible.

All is not well for all. We know this. Improvements measured over decades are far too slow for those who suffer.

Day in, day out...this larger view is not the one I go to as my inner thoughts ponder the state of the small world I occupy. Thank you, JLynne, for making me take some time to reflect and ask if what I think I know to be happening, is all there is to know.

Milktruck - awesome post!

Thanks!