I haven’t been blogging much of late – in part because of work on Deliberate Engagement. But I also have not been blogging much because it’s been that time of year when energy is depleted. Short days, grey weather, several anniversaries and a heavy personal challenge have left me without a lot to blog from.

I don’t want this blog to deteriorate into political rants. It would be easy to do, and in fact has occurred in anticipation of the November election. Others are doing a better job of that, though (although I’d like to see some of the rudeness curtailed – we need to be better than our opponents).

I think I want the blog to be like a step into a living room in a home, where we can talk about unpleasant things – but in a constructive, hopeful way. It’s not enough to complain about the horrendous decisions being made in Washington right now, if we can’t also discuss ways to counter them – and confirm to one another that we’ll help each other through the hard times coming.

It’s so easy, especially during short grey days, to just not try. “I told you so,” “Why couldn’t they see this was on the horizon when they voted in November?” and the like.

Yet this is where we watch the opposition, make our strategy, shore up our resources, and generally get dug in.

My recommendations, for what they are worth (and this is a note to myself, I admit):

1. Do not give in to the sarcastic appelations floating around in emails right now. Calling our new president “the gangsta” is as low-class and insulting as the insults of the left who made rude comments and gestures to our President Bush. Do we really want to be like them? I thought not.

2. This is the season to draw closer to the Source – in additional prayer and Bible study, study of the Catechism, of the lives and writings of the Saints. This is the time to spend weekly time before the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament (Perpetual Adoration if you have a nearby parish participating in that Devotion).

3. Practical preparation is also prudent. If we are in for a tough time, economically, begin now making plans and investing in what you need in order to become more self-sufficient. Stock up on staples (there are several threads in the FlyLady discussion forum on this topic). Simplify now so you can be more serene later.

4. Draw near to like-minded people for comfort and consolation. So the new president deleted the online prayer meeting from the White House website and replaced faith-based policies with outrageous liberal agendas. Does that stop us from praying? May this be the beginning of a groundswell of prayer such as has never been seen before in this nation! May the unity of God’s people be stronger than ever.

We got lazy during the Bush administration. The warnings were there but they were too easy to ignore.

Now we have had a wake-up call. Open your home to dinners with others who support life and sanity in the culture. Discuss how you can make a difference on the local level. Discuss your relationships with your elected officials in Washington and in your state capital – and encourage one another to contact those representatives with your desires for your state and this Nation.

Treat even our opponents with courtesy and dignity. This isn’t easy, but it’s necessary. The means we use are every bit as important as the ends we hope to achieve.

We’ll help one another get through this.