I just had to add a rather amusing postscript to yesterday’s blog. As we sat in blissful tranquility this morning, overlooking the Central Valley with a steaming cup of primo cafe, K and I realized that one of the greatest blessings for us to social distancing this past year has been the almost total absence of chisme and the lying chismosos who utter them.
Chisme translates to gossip and chismosos to those who engage in gossip. Love those words! They just sort of roll off your tongue in a twisted cadence that portends their meaning.
When we retired to paradise, we had rather naively assumed that all of the dramas, jealousies, insecurities, and mendacious gossiping prevalent in our corporate world would miraculously evaporate into one of those amazing cloud forests that descends down the mountain, then disappears in the heat of the tropical sun.
Doh!! News flash! People are people, no matter where they live or how old they are, how rich they are, or how spiritual they are. But here’s the rub. In this Age of Trumpism that has taken root not just in our politics but in the very social fabric of our society, this loathsome form of communication has only escalated and morphed in ever-more diabolical proportions.
In the beginning, we were enthralled with our new home and environment, despite warnings that people (Gringos) here gossip like Junior High School mean girls. Turns out the neighbors who warned us were some of the worst offenders. Go figure.
But what’s most troubling is that there is a solid majority of residents living in our little community who rollick in the sheer joy of spreading venomous speculation, half-truths, and out-and-out lies with no concern for the victims they injure. Kind of like Trump supporters, I guess. They have nothing but time on their hands, with no annoying work responsibilities to get in the way. They gossip with reckless abandon, kind of like pigs in shit.
Over the years, we’ve been accused of some pretty outrageous lies by people who have never even laid eyes on us but who will go to the grave convinced of the veracity of the gossip that they heard, four times removed no less. As an empath, I am working on letting those venom-tipped barbs bounce off my acutely sensitive back.
The worst part of this spiraling Gringo culture in the Age of Trumpism is that any constructive, positive efforts to communicate rationally and resolve the imagined grievances with civility and goodwill only fuels the fire. Now that lies are as credible as facts and conspiracy theories are taken as truth, there is no middle ground, just a blood-soaked line drawn in the sand.
We have tried and failed to reason with ideologues who insist that one neighbor in a gated community (us) is responsible for all 4 houses being invaded with no factual evidence to support it, or that a dog who has attacked and bitten several people has absolute rights to run loose and terrorize at will, or that a deadbeat broker is the “victim” when he defaults on a six-figure loan. No different than Trump and his enablers spewing specious lies that Trump won the election. Who are these people, and how do we avoid having their energy define our lives?
We are working on changing our behavior to avoid attracting this unwanted energy, but I have to say, I think there’s a good chance that our house was built on an ancient burial ground that really pissed off some bad-ass ancestors.
In the silver lining department, Covid has insulated us from this cloud of toxic energy. We are grateful for the respite which has allowed us to stop reacting and start focusing on a future that will become more in tune with our dreams and expectations. A place where we can resonate with like-minded souls in a mind-numbingly beautiful locale.
So, we are well on our way to a brighter future surrounded by people who share our values and common decency, and with whom we resonate. As Socrates so wisely observed, the secret to change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.
Namaste, and welcome 2021! 🙏
Jan. 3, 2021
Judy Richter 