Thank you Tom for your thoughtful writing, much of which resonates with me particularly in the case of having family members who have voted (twice) for Trump. I would say the most challenging aspect of our conversations have to do with where they get their news from (Fox),
meaning that there are many topics where it is impossible to share a common ground. It becomes so many lessons in witnessing and acceptance.
Thanks, Carol, for sharing your helpful perspective on witnessing and acceptance when it comes to facing the challenges of relating to MAGA family members. If you haven't already done so, do have a look at Anne-Laure's comment below. It's sad, and yet somehow consoling, to know how many of us are having such difficult family experiences in this age of Trump.
Dear Tom, regarding your discussion on skillful speech with family: it’s worth taking a look at an approach called “Street Epistemology” which I learned about (& practiced) in the Middle Way Society discussion group. It is a kind of structured (& mindful) way to approach discussions concerning beliefs. That said, I’ve never been able to experiment with using it in conversations with MAGA siblings who support Trump. I am a socialist and that’s enough to have been shunned, and I no longer have any contact with them, which makes me quite sad. But I think the method of Street Epistemology is quite good in approaching the discussion of beliefs especially in that it enables the practice of respect to form because one is interested in & listens to how someone values their beliefs, and its allows for the expression of differences of belief.
Thanks so much for this reference, Anne-Laure! I've taken a quick look at the Street Epistemology website, and have calendared a reminder for myself to study it in more detail prior to my next family get-together with my MAGA siblings in late June. I'm sorry to hear of the estrangement you've suffered from your siblings; I've been spared that fate with mine, but at the cost of avoiding all but the most banal of conversations and limiting our contacts to just a few occasions a year. As we are all aging and approaching our inevitable endings, that makes me sad as well.
Eric, it's so good to hear from you! It seems that you haven't been posting to your newsletter lately. Hope you've been well, and keeping busy with your other creative endeavors. As for Trump visiting the UK, if and when he does so, I will be watching for those mass protest marches!
No Tom, Ive abandoned the blog. I had cancer last year but was lucky it was operated on quickly and ok now. I'm doing a fair amount with creative projects and writing. We live in difficult times; it must be especially challenging for you and like-minded people.
Sorry to hear about the cancer, Eric, but very glad to know you're okay and keeping busy with your projects. It is indeed a challenging time here in the U.S. right now. I try to remind myself daily of the core Buddhist principle - that everything changes. It's the uncertainty as to when and how they will change that's so difficult to live with.
Thank you Tom for your thoughtful writing, much of which resonates with me particularly in the case of having family members who have voted (twice) for Trump. I would say the most challenging aspect of our conversations have to do with where they get their news from (Fox),
meaning that there are many topics where it is impossible to share a common ground. It becomes so many lessons in witnessing and acceptance.
Thanks, Carol, for sharing your helpful perspective on witnessing and acceptance when it comes to facing the challenges of relating to MAGA family members. If you haven't already done so, do have a look at Anne-Laure's comment below. It's sad, and yet somehow consoling, to know how many of us are having such difficult family experiences in this age of Trump.
Dear Tom, regarding your discussion on skillful speech with family: it’s worth taking a look at an approach called “Street Epistemology” which I learned about (& practiced) in the Middle Way Society discussion group. It is a kind of structured (& mindful) way to approach discussions concerning beliefs. That said, I’ve never been able to experiment with using it in conversations with MAGA siblings who support Trump. I am a socialist and that’s enough to have been shunned, and I no longer have any contact with them, which makes me quite sad. But I think the method of Street Epistemology is quite good in approaching the discussion of beliefs especially in that it enables the practice of respect to form because one is interested in & listens to how someone values their beliefs, and its allows for the expression of differences of belief.
Thanks so much for this reference, Anne-Laure! I've taken a quick look at the Street Epistemology website, and have calendared a reminder for myself to study it in more detail prior to my next family get-together with my MAGA siblings in late June. I'm sorry to hear of the estrangement you've suffered from your siblings; I've been spared that fate with mine, but at the cost of avoiding all but the most banal of conversations and limiting our contacts to just a few occasions a year. As we are all aging and approaching our inevitable endings, that makes me sad as well.
If he comes to the UK there will be mass protest marches.
Eric, it's so good to hear from you! It seems that you haven't been posting to your newsletter lately. Hope you've been well, and keeping busy with your other creative endeavors. As for Trump visiting the UK, if and when he does so, I will be watching for those mass protest marches!
No Tom, Ive abandoned the blog. I had cancer last year but was lucky it was operated on quickly and ok now. I'm doing a fair amount with creative projects and writing. We live in difficult times; it must be especially challenging for you and like-minded people.
Sorry to hear about the cancer, Eric, but very glad to know you're okay and keeping busy with your projects. It is indeed a challenging time here in the U.S. right now. I try to remind myself daily of the core Buddhist principle - that everything changes. It's the uncertainty as to when and how they will change that's so difficult to live with.