Was it the super moon the likes of which will not be seen for another 65 years, or was it the most unlikely election result in a lifetime? Take your pick.

The week following the election of Donald Trump to the presidency of United States was as intense and emotional as I have witnessed outside of 9/11. That week, almost every client that I saw or heard from on a group call were shocked, angry, confused, and stuck. I was taken aback by the intensity of their reaction. I did my best to shine the light of perspective on each situation.

In the days and weeks that followed, what became more and more apparent was the impact and destruction of fear. For months, people have been hearing threats. Most of those threats were dismissed because there was no possibility of them being executed because the man perceived by so many as being the bully of the election was going to lose.

These are not my thoughts. These are the thoughts that came to the surface as we tried to work toward moving beyond what so many felt was a devastating loss. My thought is that fear, real or perceived, is a destructive force. It reminds me of the time that I really lost my temper in front of my five-year-old daughter. She recoiled in fear for that moment, so I reach for her to take her in my arms and make sure she knew that she was safe. But it is not that simple. She had the right and reason to be confused, and now she had to process whether the earlier threat or the warm embrace were real.

My take away from this whole experience is that we must all be very cautious of using fear as a weapon. Daily we see this as parents use it on their children, spouses toward one another, employers toward employees and vice versa. Donald Trump did not invent fear nor he does not have a monopoly on it. He has given us the opportunity to see how ugly and painful it can be and to be aware of it wherever it may rear its ugly head.

I am also mindful that many of the people who changed their political allegiance in this election also acted out of fear. There is a palpable fear for many who have seen many aspects of their lives eroding. To dismiss their fear is as wrong as dismissing the remnants of fear felt by those that are struggling in the post-election.

What I recommended to each and every client in the struggle, as well as to those that are fearful that they might never get an opportunity to build their lives back to where they might be have been some years back, is to please get curious. Get curious about one another and in that curiosity find compassion.

In previous posts, I have said that compassion is the antidote to fear, and it is never more apparent that it is a necessary antidote in all of our lives today.

Onward and upward!