THE DAY AFTER

     There is always the day after, after the buildup and the expectations, after the preparation. And then what? Does it match the dreams of the day or was it a big letdown and where and how do we move on? For me, the best thing about Thanksgiving Day is not the meal, for trust me, there is always a reason for a meal in the Jewish religion; in fact, every Friday nite will do the trick!! So what was it?
     It was the watching of all the cousins testing out the relationships again. It was watching them bond and make plans together. It was watching the parents turn into kids again, old family jokes, and seeing the aunt and uncle parts come into play. It is hard when families are scattered so seeing them together is a treat beyond words.
     So I am thankful for having this opportunity once again and look forward to the next time, but what about those for whom the day after is just as bland or dangerous as the day before and the day before and all the days after? We need to keep them in mind not just the day after but for all time until the problem is resolved.
     The Dreamers. Those poor souls who stand to get evicted from what for all intents and purposes is their country, the one where they grew up, where they live, study, work and yes, are beginning to raise families of their own. Olivia Wilde took advantage of her follower, Ivanka, and sent her a message. “I see you’re following me on Instagram. This Thanksgiving I would be grateful if you use the influence you have to advocate for a CLEAN Dream Act by December,” she began. “Every day that passes without a clean Dream Act means anxiety and deportation for immigrant youth.”
      Will it be heard? Probably not, for so hardhearted is the administration under which we live. More and more it behaves like a growing demagogic family, with family members butting in, tweeting and shouting and participating in areas where they do not belong. Junior shouts just like his father, daring people to provide justice as they investigate him. The Trump family thinks it is immune but perhaps, on the day after, we can manage to shake that up, at least a bit.
     There are signs of hope. Flynn's lawyers have informed Trump's lawyers that there is no more sharing of info and plans. Simply put, that means that Flynn is going to co-operate with Mueller. Another nail in the coffin, hopefully. Trump shouts his alternative reality - lies - as he rails against Obamacare even as the enrollment continues apace, more than ever, even as he tries his hardest to sabotage it, he and the members of Congress who have their own gold plated medical care plan!!
     Even more encouraging is the fact that Billy Baldwin has come out against Trump and his sexual behavior, telling all how Trump hit on his wife who showed him the door, uninvited as he was!! We must remember that Trump is just as guilty, if not more, as those perverts caught up in the wave of disclosures and as much as they deserve to be punished - even more so does he. It appears that being outed shames them, but that man just boasts and boasts.
     Finally, we have the words of Colin Kaepernick who has certainly put his money where his mouth is. He has had repercussions for his actions but continues, no violence, positive actions and here is his message from yesterday - and for the day after and for all the days and years after until America comes back to the right path, to her proper historical and moral roles. May it be soon.
     

"I realize that our fight is the same fight. We're all fighting for our justice, for our freedom, and realizing that we're in this fight together makes it all the more powerful.

If there's one thing that I take away from today and seeing the beauty of everybody out here, it's that we're only getting stronger every day, we're only getting larger and larger every day. I see the strength in everybody.

The dancing, the rituals – that is our resistance. We continue to fight. We continue to fight for justice. We fight for our freedom, and we continue on that path."