Playmate

(Online image)

It was an invigorating and secretive part of my mid-teenage years. I was able to buy a used copy of Playboy magazine from a schoolmate. Do not ask about the articles in the publication. I was not interested in reading! I wanted the excitement and fantasy of the pictures. I had a Playmate!  As much as I wishfully dreamt, a meaningful relationship never developed. However, I certainly enjoyed many aspects of this titillating relationship. 

For more than a decade I have been in a primarily one-sided relationship. I have been enticed and captivated by the siren song of politics. The promise of, "This is the most important election in history," captured my attention, devotion, and massive portions of internal energy. The promises grew and my response intensified. Over time this relationship became lopsided. I began to sense and now fully believe that I have been played. It is about abject loyalty. It is about taking sides and forsaking all others. It is about isolation and exclusion. I have come to realize that believing in politicians to care about me is the same as fantasizing that Playboy's Playmate would personally visit me because I gazed longingly and lustfully at her photos. 

Fostering and cultivating relationships is foundational to having a playmate. Play contributes to exploration, listening, and understanding. Play expands not only relationships, but the perspective of everyone involved. Playmates enhance and uplift one another. Even in the midst of disagreement there is a commitment to respect each other. 

I choose not be be played in the current deluge of political pornography. Visual and online media bombard enticing images and alluring sound bites with little concern for their effects on people. Everyone involved in this morally offensive drama wants to entice, stimulate, and engorge which produces an organism of venom. No soothing endorphins and cuddly afterglow follows. Rather it becomes an addictive rush to gain false righteousness and seek retribution.

Farmer's Market in L'Aquila Italy

I am intentionally focusing on relationships and interactions which are positive, playful, and enhancing. This does not mean that I choose ignorance or apathy. Instead of wallowing in anxiety or the quagmire of misinformation, I am cultivating perspective through action. I want to feel free, alive, and aware of my surroundings and the people who make up the communities in which I interact.  A healthy system of community will withstand the chaos of random humiliation, exclusion, and elimination. My plan is to continue enjoying time with people in personal, civil, and life affirming interactions.