Happy 4th?
It’s okay if it’s not. For many of us it isn’t.
Growing up, the fourth used to mean bubbles and cookouts, marching in parade chucking candy at people. Later it became drinking by the lake with friends, wondering the streets of Chicago into the wee hours of the morning chasing the last of the fireworks.
It’s not so simple anymore.
I remember when Trump won the election - the first time. Walking through my college campus was like being a part of an endless funeral. Most professors canceled class. Those who didn’t gave us a space to grieve in whatever way we needed. Something indeed had died that day - our hopes and belief in an American Dream.
Many of us go down this path; raised to believe that we lived in the best country in the world, where everyone had rights and freedom to pursue the dreams and be happy. That the fight was over, that we had it figured out. The older I get, the disillusionment seeps in slowly and then all at once.
I continue learning and getting a better understanding of what our country really is and at every turn there’s more and more reason to believe this country never intended to live out what it preached — at least not for everyone. It feels like living in a fool’s paradise, a joker’s trick, a comedian’s hallucination.
I’m exhausted. I’ve been fighting, running on empty for a long time, and I know many of us are feeling it too.
Today the United States turned 250 years old. That feels old, but when you look at other countries around the world, it actually ins’t. Just looking at New York City alone, with a history that spans over 400 years - 250 is not nothing, but it’s still quite young in the grand scheme of things. And this gives me some hope - that these are growing pains, and that we can get through this.
It’s okay to take a break. It’s okay - go enjoy the cookout, go chase the fireworks. Sure, Taylor Swift is getting married and Trump is throwing a fit and the media will continue trying to tell us where to pay attention. But I’m going to choose to give my attention to what’s real and in front of me. My home in Chicago, my cat, my roommate and upstairs neighbor. The garden I get to share with my friends, my friends in Chicago and around the country and around the world, my family. My incredibly loving and giving band who helped bring these songs to life, and were crazy enough to hop on a tour with me.
If we shift our attention in just the right way, we can see that there is a lot of work to do, but also a lot of hands to do it. So rest — this is essential. But don’t give in.
Keep on Hoping.
Keep on hoping is now available everywhere you stream music, and is also up on Bandcamp. I hope you find something in there worth hoping for.