A headline in The Washington Post caught my eye today, “Harris and Trump prep for a debate that could define rest of the campaign.” I wasn’t thinking about the U.S. Presidential election, but about how often I do this to myself, decide that some upcoming event, test, work assignment, or conversation is definitive and “could define the rest of my life.”
Or, even if I don’t think the upcoming “test” is definitive, how often do I condition my happiness on the outcome of something largely outside of my control yet decide that it IS within my control and that I MUST make it happen the way I want it to happen?
I do this all the time with work or service projects. I decide that I do not get to be happy, relieved, or even live life until a certain thing is accomplished and not just done, but done well and right. I decide that SO much is riding on the outcome.
Yet, is it really? While every event does affect the trajectory of my life, it’s also true that small events, daily moments, probably affect the course of my life as much as nationally televised debates. Does anyone on their deathbed croak out, “bring me my September 10th to-do list, I think I left something hanging…”?
I’m not saying that today’s debate won’t be impactful, but at the end of Joe Biden’s life, I’m guessing that he won’t be thinking about his disastrous debate performance in 2024. If he’s anything like most people (and he seems to be), he’ll be thinking about the people he loved in his life and the moments and times he had with them.
Just for today, I notice, for example, that I’m pretty tired for some reason and that some of the simple normal things are hard. Maybe instead of pushing through my to-do list I need to take a nap, go for a walk, read Boar Island my Anna Pigeon mystery on a couch. Maybe that could actually “define the rest of [my] campaign.”
Although, to be clear, everyone else should work their butts off for my preferred candidate for President…