Below is one of our stories. Please consider sending yours. Your struggles and endurance will feed us all if you're willing to share. You can remain anonymous. Just indicate such when you send your story to indivisible.st.johns@gmail. com
Enjoy and reflect:
I am embarrassed to admit that before 2016 I didn't pay much attention to politics. I voted in the two presidential elections I was old enough to vote in, voting both times for President Obama. I trusted him inherently and felt confident with him in office so I went about my life and trusted him to do his job well.
As November 2016 drew closer and closer I paid more and more attention and became more and more horrified. The possibility of a trump presidency seemed very real to me as I live in a red area and saw lots of support for Trump on bumper stickers and signs and saw support even among my friends and family.
On November 8, 2016, I went to bed before the election was called. I knew what was going to happen. When I woke up on the 9th I wanted to hibernate but I didn't have that luxury as I needed to get my kindergartener up and ready for school. When we walked out of our house to head toward the bus stop, the other children and families doing the same were celebrating. The kids were yelling to each other, “Trump won!” I was pretty quiet, not feeling it necessary to engage with elementary school kids about politics, until a fourth grader said to me, “Andrea, Trump won! Aren't you excited?” I told her I wasn't, that instead I was disappointed and really worried. In truth, I felt that I must've awakened in an alternate reality and was on the verge of tears and a full-on panic attack. This fourth grader was shocked at my answer, she yelled at me, “You wanted Hillary to win?!? But she's a LIAR!” I said to her, “Hillary was not my first choice but when forced to choose between her and Trump, she’s a MUCH better choice.” She yelled back at me, “But she's a LIAR!” I explained to her that this wasn't something that expected to change her mind about and that she definitely wasn't going to change my mind and that we should just not talk about it as she and all the other kids were friends with my daughter and that they should just be kids and have fun with each other.
In the following days I tried to get over the disgust and find a way to move forward. I decided that I needed to pay more attention, get more involved and do what I could to make a change. I felt that I needed to show my daughter that action is the way to handle adversity and disappointment. I didn't want her to see me just complain rather than be an agent for change. I joined my HOA board as a small first step then I heard about an Indivisible St. Johns meeting on an NPR program. I showed up to that meeting and then I joined the Steering Committee, figuring that would be the fastest way to learn how to make a difference. At that time I didn't know who my congressman was or the fact that there was even such a thing as a state senator!
Activism and holding my elected officials accountable is now my way of life. It's not something I do, it is who I am. I see a change coming and I now have two daughters who I can look in the eye knowing I do everything I can to make their future kinder, greener and safer. While I get great satisfaction from lending my time and passion to our movement, that is not quite enough. Our movement needs to be funded! Indivisible St. Johns members now can give on a recurring monthly schedule or one-time donations through ActBlue. I encourage you to share your story with us and if you can, no matter how small the amount, give through ActBlue and fund the movement!
Andrea DeGeorge
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