Live an Excellent Life : Bert's Blog

Is President Trump gone a happy thought?

Last week I posted on social media:

“What’s the happiest thought you can think of?”

I got some wonderful replies.

But one stood out from a childhood friend:

“That Trump was gone!” (He said it a little more harshly, I edited it out)

At first, I was going to ignore it.

Instead, I wrote back:

Hello Jon (not his real name),

It’s good to hear from you. I hope you’re well.

I know times are tense, and I get frustrated too.

I usually avoid politics because it doesn’t change much,

but since you brought this up, here are a few thoughts:

1)No matter how strongly we disagree, respect works best. When we lose it, communication breaks down. I find both political parties are disrespectful, and it only creates more problems

2)It’s more powerful to be for what we want than to spend energy on destroying what we don’t.

3) When I feel frustrated, I step back. A break from the noise helps me reset and see clearly.

I closed by wishing him well and saying I was truly glad to hear from him.

He replied that Trump is a dictator, doesn’t deserve respect, and that I was part of the problem. (Edited this too.)

At that point, I didn’t respond. There was nothing more to say.

Here’s the thing: this is a childhood friend.

Face-to-face, I don’t think he would’ve spoken this way.

But online, it’s easier to attack.

Sadly, he’s not the only one.

This is the tone of our culture right now.

What anger frustration and disrespect can lead to...

It reminds me of the book Left to Tell about the Rwanda genocide.

I know my friend insulting me may seem a long way from genocide,

but that situation started about 30 years before—

with small seeds of division and resentment that grew over time.

Radio propaganda later turned neighbors against each other,

and a million people were killed in just a few months.

Even classmates and friends became enemies.

How does that happen?

When we let division win.

Of course, I’m not saying America is Rwanda.

But the same pattern is possible anywhere:

once anger and disrespect are normalized, they spread.

So what’s the answer?

Respect. Communication. Self-control. Awareness.

Choosing a higher standard.

Jesus said, “Turn the other cheek. Love your enemies.”

That’s not weakness—it’s strength, wisdom, and maturity.

It doesn’t mean we stop protecting ourselves or stop speaking truth because not speaking up is not the answer either.

It means we don’t allow hate to own us.

We’re all spinning together on this planet.

If we keep destroying each other, we’ll eventually destroy ourselves.

There has to be a better way.

If I had rephrased my response to Jon, it might have been:

“Hey, wishing a leader was gone isn’t the way. You sound tired and upset—maybe take a break and reset. I know you care, it’s just how your caring is showing up that's the problem."

Because the truth is

If you remove Trump, or Biden, or Kamala, someone else will take their place.

Real change doesn’t start with tearing down others.

It starts inside ourselves.

Making real change...

That’s why I told Jon the best advice I know:

don’t feed the anger, channel it into something meaningful.

He could write, run for council, volunteer, or create change in his community.

Otherwise, the anger just festers—leaving him frustrated, repelling people, and gaining no real power.

I don’t have all the answers.

But I know this: without self-mastery, we can’t influence the outer world.

That’s why I share encouragement, perspective, and tools for awareness.