Election Anxiety

This is so crazy but the election and news about the election is giving me major anxiety. I fully realize that people on both sides of the candidates are probably feeling the same things, even though it's unreal to me how that happens. In the grand scheme of things, this election probably doesn't matter much at all. And at the risk of sounding like the older generation that drives me crazy when they say things like this, I can definitely see some parallels from this time to the scriptures.  But I have already voted and have received the notification that my vote was received and counted. And I'm going to look around me and do what I can in my actual sphere of influence. And that has to be good enough right now. I am very carefully picking what kind of news I'm getting and what kind of social media I'm consuming. I figure if I don't know what's happening in the world the next 8 days, it will be ok. 

Last night at family dinner we all put our phones on the table to see who would crack first and need to pick up their phone. We ended up putting them in a box (the 5 year old did it so we didn't touch them) and used the table to play card games. I had a really fun time. And those who weren't playing cards were running around outside with the younger kids. It was really good for us. The 20 year old cracked first, but all of us were having the impulses to check the phones, either to google something, or if notifications came through. We really ought to do that every family dinner. 

Tonight we are carving pumpkins to get ready for Halloween. Then the rest of the week when I'm not at work, I think it's going to be self care week. Do things around my home or neighborhood that feel good. Smile at people at the grocery store, that kind of thing. And I'm going to read books that make me happy. It supposed to get cold, so I'm going to get cozy. 

Next week on actual election day/night, I won't be home and I have plans for the evening so I will tune it out even longer. No matter what happens, it's not the end of the world, no matter what my anxiety is telling me.