People be all about conspiracy theories about The Man controlling things then go shopping on Amazon, buy food in plastic, eat killed tortured animals casually, & write their deep thoughts on Big Tech-funded extremist-platforming Substack.

Yeah we can’t avoid everything
we can’t be perfect
but when you got a choice to feed the kind wolf—take it every time. If working with the toxic wolf leverages change toward good, go for it.

But biking, public transport, voting, going vegan, zero waste, meditation—no one but you is stopping you from putting a lot less aggression and a lot more love into our harried world and abused planet.

And if you do, when you do—you might inspire others to do similar.

I love decorating for the Holidays.

Crafted stockings bought from local fairs or makers over the years, made out of old persian rugs or quilts or brocade. Bubbling lights from the last company in the US that makes ’em here.

Three Christmas trees made out of old doors, one small and green, one medium-sized and maroon or red, one tall and white…with brass hooks to hold the ornaments. A few years I piled books into the shape of a tree, or my mountain friends brought me a fresh young tree from National Forest where it would be culled anyways, or one year I dug one up and planted it in my front yard, come Spring. It’s tall, now.

I love wiring a silly, fun, festive huge red and gold velvet bow wired to the front of my daily ride (a bike)—the bow, bought for $5 at a local antique shop. I love displaying, and pawing through, an old Norman Rockwell Christmas books, art and poems from around the world, and recipes.

I love simply decorating our home sweet home for the Holidays—and I’m Buddhist. This time of year is about Peace on Earth, and cozy, and community.

You know who else loves decorating for Christmas? Not our illegal immigrant First Lady, Melania Trump.

This is what I want to accomplish, here. To offer a healthy alternative to this hypocrisy. Put “Biden” after her quote and you’d find out in a hurry that all these folks who “don’t care” care very much.

So yeah, this was from the first term…doubt her views have changed for the kinder. And yeah, this is more about pointing out their hypocrisy, just as they love to hug the flag and pretend to be patriotic while tearing our freedoms apart.

Many folks care about Christmas, and were this the Obamas, Clintons, Bidens, say, they’d freak out on Fox News nightly for months.

Again, she has a staff, that we pay for! It’s not like she has to do anything but pose for a few photos.

And out of context, anyone can be bored about Christmas or decorating all they want! In context, this is the party that has cried bloody murder about the War on Christmas for two decades plus, now. If this were Michelle Obama saying this? Now you see the problem?

A reader with an eloquent critique, and my reply:

I love the first half of this post, the holiday memories, the handmade decorations, the joy of simple traditions.

But I’m struggling to see how the second half aligns with the mission of this space. Mindfulness-focused communities usually encourage posts that uplift, unify, and help us connect more deeply with ourselves and each other.

Political commentary, especially when it leans into criticism or divisiveness, can take us out of that mindful, supportive mindset. This seems to be the norm here lately.

My reply:

No, sorry, mindfulness is also about awareness. And we don’t ignore cruelty, suffering, hate, fear. The way to peace is not avoidance, but bringing awareness—which is love, I’m sure you’ve read—to light and dark, both.

I don’t mean that snippily: I wrote this, and my love (in the first half) is as important, I hope, as the calling out of MAGA’s selfish hypocrisy when it comes to Christmas. Remember Fox milking “the War on Christmas” for a decade straight? When she said this? Crickets.