After four years of lying, fighting, trade wars, Muslim bans, sickness, death, sexism, court packing, transgender military bans, and various other forms of bullshit, today has the potential to be the very last day of the Donald Trump era. Today could see decency, kindness, honesty, integrity, and character return to the White House. Today could be the day where the chapter of Trump finally ends and a new and better course is charted for our nation. Today we could elect Joe Biden as president of the United States. Or, it could see the continuation of Trump and Trumpism.

With stakes this high it will be difficult to operate in a healthy headspace today. Yesterday I woke up heart pounding, adrenaline surging, and mind racing about all the different paths to victory for Joe and what would happen to our country if none of them play out. Entertaining those kinds of thoughts is part of what every politically informed person does leading up to an election, but it is not always a healthy or sustainable way to operate for the entirety of Election Day. Below are some tips for how I'm planning on keeping my sanity on this otherwise insane day, and why I think doing these things will help make today as positive an experience as possible.

Keep a Normal Routine

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Today I plan on trying to keep my usual Tuesday routine to help distract my brain from any creeping election anxiety that may be lurking around the corner. Most Tuesdays I eat lunch with my grandparents and watch a movie in the MCU with them. Today we're watching Ant-Man and next week we'll watch Captain America Civil War (which may be quite fitting for the time depending on who wins tonight). On Tuesdays I also have my class on the foundations of Buddhism from 11:00-12:15, and I will attend that lecture and take notes the same way I've been doing since August. Keeping the same routine will help make today feel just like any other day and allow me to focus at least briefly on tasks and goals that aren't election related.

Meditate

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The first thing I did when I woke up this morning and the last thing I did before I fell asleep last night was to meditate. Meditation seems intimidating to those who don't know much about it but in reality it's not that difficult if you take the time to practice it. Personally, I prefer grounding meditations to help recenter myself and refocus on the present moment. When I can't stop thinking about the future, or when my brain is constantly running hypothetical scenarios that are outside of my control, I stop what I am doing and take 3-5 minutes to meditate. I start by focusing on my feet and work my way up to the top of my head thinking about the feelings and sensations that I am currently experiencing. I also find it helpful sometimes to engage in a self-narrative if I'm particularly stressed to help block out background noise in my brain. I'll think thoughts like "my feet are on the floor", "my legs are on a chair", "my chest is rising and falling", "my nose feels the breath coming in and going out". Doing this for only a few minutes helps me to recenter and find a balance between focusing on the present moment and on what the future holds.

Remember Impermanence

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One of the main teachings in the Buddhist sangha is the idea of impermanence as a centrality to life and death. As I understand it, a failure to embrace the impermanence of all things is what leads to suffering in our lifetimes. To cling onto experiences or feelings causes people to become trapped in a cycle of an inability to recreate positive emotions or an inability to move past negative ones. No matter what happens tonight and as the ballots are counted in the days ahead, I will remember that everything around me including every thought, emotion, and experience I have is impermanent. I will keep in mind that if Trump wins, democracy itself is impermanent and the ideas that created it are too. But also, all feelings of hopelessness, negativity, despair, and loss are impermanent as well. They will not last forever because nothing on this earth lasts forever. If Biden wins, I will keep in mind that the feelings of overcoming hate, of winning the fight, and of sheer and utter relief are impermanent. It is important that we do not become stuck in a loop where we are unable to refocus on other battles to be fought and other issues to overcome. My professor explained it to me this way; imagine that your feelings of grasping and of craving are a hand. The hand wants to hold onto emotions, especially those that are very positive. However, if you are grasping something so tightly in your hand, when a new opportunity arises you will not be able to pick it up. You must always drop what you are holding onto in order to move on to the next experience in your life. To avoid this process of clinging and then dropping, it is better for the fingers of the hand to not close or grasp at all. It is best to acknowledge the emotions and experiences you have as they happen, but to remain open to the next ones as they will inevitably come. In other words, do not grasp and make a fist around whatever you experience tonight be it joy or loss. Instead, allow yourself to feel it with an open palm, leaving room for the next experience that is sure to come.

These three things are what I'm counting on to get me through Election Day and the days to come. Mayor Pete as usual said it best, "today is about what we have a chance to deliver." Today is about chance. It's about hope. If things don't go Joe's way, it doesn't mean all hope is lost. It just means we need to try our luck again. Whatever happens it's important to keep fighting. Keep the energy that you have today and throw it behind issues that matter to you. March for racial justice, petition for better healthcare coverage, fight for a woman's right to choose and for the trans and gay rights to be fully realized and protected under the law. History is a series of battles just like this one, and the good guys don't always win. But the difference between the good guys and the bad guys is that the good guys always keep fighting because they have something legitimate that is worth fighting for. Yes, today is about what we have a chance to deliver, but it is also about the battles that are yet to be won. If you haven't voted yet, go vote right now and if you've already voted, get three friends to go vote too. Happy Election Day everyone. It's Joe time!