Yes, I Voted – Steve Pavlina

Yes, I voted. Yes, for Kamala of course. That wasn’t even a decision… just the most obvious choice ever. It was really a vote against complete fucking idiocy.

I’m super curious to see what the results are. While I’d prefer not to experience the complete fucking idiocy route, I do understand that it’s very popular these days. Obviously a lot of people are highly motivated to experience such a ride – truly a descent – into a reality so richly abundant in lies, racism, the nastiest betrayal of modern days, and more from the dumbest, most malicious, self-centered jackass of U.S. President we’ve ever seen in history.

I voted by mail early last week. I’ve always been an independent, never belonging to any party. From my view one party has really jumped off a cliff into the land of complete nuttery in recent years, so I voted for the opposite one on every ballot choice where that was a factor. Again, not even a decision. It was like voting for “okay” versus “really fucking dumb.” I voted for okay because I prefer okay to really fucking dumb. Of course for those who align with really fucking dumb, it’s gonna appear to be the opposite.

I’m not seeking to influence the results either way. This time I feel very much aligned with being in observer mode and allowing it to play out as it will. It’s fascinating however it plays out, like watching a slow motion video of a bullet blasting through an apple. I can see why these two paths are battling it out with such fervor.

Right now I feel the most predictable outcome is that Kamala wins, the opposite side throws a massive hissy fit (sore losers and all that – but losers nonetheless), but it all coasts forward due to the backstop of Biden still being in the White House to help assist the transition (and prevent lots of nonsense). Many, many people breathe a huge sigh of relief, not just in the USA but across the globe as well. I think it could even be more celebratory than when Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon in terms of the total positive energy output – like the Ewok dance party at the end of Return of the Jedi, if all the Ewoks and their guest took MDMA. (I would take MDMA with an Ewok in a heartbeat by the way.)

I’m also prepared for the opposite though. In that reality Kamala loses and graciously concedes (even though it would probably crush her on the inside). There’s a massive grieving process to be undertaken… like a really, really big one for so many people. People are stunned. There’s a lot of anger and outrage, which leads to blame, not necessarily hurled fairly but still understandable. And people prepare themselves for an energetic experience much like the descent into COVID’s blanket over our reality… only with the expectation of it being much worse this time. Meanwhile in the other camp, there is great celebration of Power’s seemingly final victory over Truth. The celebration on the Death Star is still lively but more muted, a victory that even those who are celebrating aren’t entirely sure they wanted. And now they know that they’re all going to be incels for a really, really long time now. Wow… it’s like celebration on the surface but also something being mourned on the inside. Victory with a very deep sense of loss. This side is going to need something way stronger than MDMA to get through this in the long run. Business for psychedelic therapists will be through the roof for sure – treating both sides through endless swirls of juicy trauma.

Either way – to me – it’s a beautiful outcome. As yes, I do have to engage my sadist side to see and appreciate the full richness of it. Collective cooperation is beautiful, but so is collective grieving. While on a human level, I’d only feel like celebrating a Kamala victory, I feel that my deepest inner self is already pre-satisfied and even pre-delighted by both outcomes. They’re both such rich and intense human experiences to be had. One is like a romcom while the other is like a horror movie (with a twist of thriller), and as long as you retain the awareness that both can be valid and meaningful human experiences, you’ll be fine either way.

What I love about this election cycle is the intensity of it. Either way it’s a fascinating ride through the realm of human existence. Whichever way this goes, I feel like a part of me will still mourn the absence of the other reality, knowing that it too would have been intensely rich and meaningful to experience firsthand. But alas, this is a chokepoint, and we need to pick one or the other.

If you have the option to vote in this election and haven’t done so yet, I encourage you to take the plunge. It’s a meaningful experience to participate. I didn’t exercise this option for most of my adult life and only finally registered and voted for the first time when I was in my 40s. I always told myself that mathematically it doesn’t matter. Other times I told myself I didn’t like any of the candidates. Remember how I shared in a recent video that it’s really easy to talk yourself out of experiences by raising seemingly rational objections to them.

While I cannot argue with the math and the unappealing nature of some of the choices, what I can say is that experientially, it does matter. On the inside, I found voting to be a very different experience than not voting. It does have its tedious side – I like to read through all the ballot initiatives and make informed choices there, which takes time – but there’s also an aspect to it that feels fun, lively, and engaging. It’s hard to describe if you haven’t experienced it, so if you can experience it, especially this election cycle, I’m sure you’ll gain something precious by making it a reality. Consider that your reality presents this option to you for a reason. It’s a worthwhile human experience to have, and by participating you’ll learn something about yourself. Look beyond the numbers and your seemingly rational objections, and just go have the actual experience. Look down and notice that you’re still wearing your human suit, and note that this is an invitation to do something uniquely human.

I say let’s have fun today – whatever happens. Let’s be like the Klingons all drinking and celebrating together in the bar in the ST:TNG episode “Redemption” – one of my favorite two-parters of the series. Even though they’re on different sides, they still all recognize each other as fellow Klingons, engaging in a great battle, fighting like the true warriors they’ve always strived to be. (And heartfelt kudos to Tony Todd for playing the role of Kurn so ridiculously well!)

So even though my human self consistently computes that Trump supporters are truly the most idiotic, blindly obedient, loathesome creatures to slither across this world, on the spirit side I’d still be delighted to drink blood wine with them (the vegan version) and celebrate the full richness – and insanity – of our human journeys together. I’m admittedly impressed by spirits that choose to set their human character intelligence dials so ridiculously low in order to have that kind of experience here. I can’t see myself wanting to have that kind of experience anytime soon, but I can at least see the appeal of it from a certain perspective. It makes me wonder in earnest where all their character points went instead. Please let me get a few drinks ahead before we interact though. I’m not much of a drinker, so it shouldn’t take long.

Just be clear though… we’re still not gonna invite such wretches to join us in CGC because that kind of dumbshittery would drag the club down so much, voiding its raison d’être. But that doesn’t mean we still can’t share drinks together on neutral ground now and then.

I don’t know about you, but I really enjoy the contrast of looking at this election cycle through various lenses, often cycling among them – the human lens, the spirit lens, the “everything is perfect as it is” lens, and so on. These images combine into a rich tapestry, one that teaches me a lot about myself and what kind of human I most resonate with being. If you resonate with a very different part of the human spectrum, great for you. I’m delighted with the choices I’ve made for myself, and my greatest wish for you in this life is that you find your sweet spot of delight here in this reality too.

I like being a political independent in this life. I still feel no desire to join any particular party. I also like participating and making choices that align with my values. I’d love to see the choices becoming richer and more subtle in future years. Deciding between okay and really fucking dumb doesn’t exactly put me to the test, but I’m still relatively new to voting, so maybe reality is dishing up the easy ones first. I got more from the other choices on the ballot, each one making me first consider what kind of human I wanted to be when making the decision. I especially liked it when the question was essentially asking me where I wanted to place my trust.

I know this is a rough ride for some people, and for that you have my genuine empathy. I get it. A lot is at stake here. I don’t seek to minimize or dismiss that. But please do consider the perspective that this human experience is a precious and temporary one, we’re all taking this amazing ride together, and it’s all deeply purposeful. It’s going to be a rich and meaningful – and very human – experience no matter what the outcome.

We’ll all end up together on the other side anyway, and that will eventually bring major perspective shifts when we’ve shed these squishy yet delicious human bodies. Please don’t put yourself in the position of Regretting Tomorrow before it happens. Let’s intend and allow this day to be a beautiful one. Beauty. Beauty. Beauty. It’s all around you if you care to take it in.

Don’t panic… unless you get off on panicking, in which case you’re free to panic as much as you desire.

As a side note, in Conscious Growth Club our Intention Infusion experiment this month is to collectively hold the intention to “dump the baggage,” so I’m also curious to see if the manifestation of that has some connection to this election as well. One way it seems rather obvious while the other way it still seems obvious, just with way more constipation and a much longer releasing process. Either way I think my human reality is in store for a really good dump soon.