I can't help but feel surprised whenever I come across someone who's talking about the idea of doing something *"when the world returns to normal."*

*Normal???*

What is this *"normal,"* of which you speak? 

![0124Sunset.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/2uHXhyuA-0124-Sunset.jpg)
*Down to a sunless sea...*

Color me cynical, but I don't think there's much of a chance we'll *ever* return to *"normal"*... or whatever you might call the state of the world in — let's say — late 2019. A year ago.

If *anything,* I think we're just in the middle of a great big *re-set* of some kind. 

To be honest, though, I am not sure I *want* to go back to where things were a year ago. I'd much rather head towards something *"new and improved"* if such a thing were possible.

And therein lies the infamous *"rub"*, of course. Odds seem very high that we are simply headed towards something *different* that's not necessarily *better.*

![0124Sunflower.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/w7D1dt7T-0124-Sunflower.jpg)
*Sunflower and prayer flags*

Still, maybe it's a requirement of the human psyche to fill ourselves with some kind of *hope* — however futile — that *better things* are somewhere out ahead. Alas, I have grown increasingly skeptical in my old age... the only thing I feel reasonably assured of is that *"things"* are ahead. And, most likely, they will be no improvement on what we currently call the *"status quo."*

To wit, in a couple of weeks there will be a Presidential election in the US of A. Yup, it's just *two weeks* ahead, and I feel slightly ashamed and sad to admit that I have never cared less about politics than I do, right now.

Regardless of *who* gets elected, chances are that we'll be dealing with a munted shitshow for the next four years, and beyond. 

![0124Purple.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/s5uh8Ls8-0124-Purple.jpg)
*Deep purple cornflower in our meadow...*

*"Politics"* is a strange fish, at the best of times.

You can talk to people about politics, and what their *"party affiliation"* or *"political leanings"* might be, but if you start to drill down into why — or why *not* — something is actually *a good idea* when *functionally applied,* you are often met with blank looks. 

So much of the time, we vote for things or throw our energy and enthusiasm behind them for little more reason than *they SOUND good* but there's very little substantive thinking that goes into *how* people arrive at their beliefs. 

And so often? So often such closely held beliefs are misguided and not actually based in *applied reality* but instead in the need to feel like *"we're behind a movement."*

![0124Yellow.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/gE7oZ1d5-0124-Yellow.jpg)
*Calendula*

Liberal? Conservative? Anarchist? Libertarian? Communist? Socialist? Oligarchist? Imperialist? Nationalist? Monarchist? Fascist? 

*Why* is any one of these *"-isms"* good for YOU, and why is a world where a majority thinks like you do a *good thing?* And *how* is what you purport to stand behind *bad* for some, and *how bad* will it be, for them? *"To the victor goes all the spoils"* the old truism goes... but what is ultimately the net effect on the *losers* in that equation? Or is their *"lot"* ultimately reduced to needing to *"snap into lie or perish"* in a totalitarian sort of way? 

Do you even *understand* what the *-ism* you stand for *means,* in a practical sense? People love to throw political terms around — often as incendiary insults — without actually *knowing* what the term they are using truly *means.* For example, Cuba is a *"Socialist"* country, Sweden is *not.* The USA is a *Federal Democratic Republic.* So is Germany. 

![0124Roses.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/QgMxeV2h-0124-Roses.jpg)
*Roses in our garden*

When I was five or six years old I pretty much decided that the world was *not a nice place* and now that I'm past sixty, I *still* feel that the world is not a nice place. 

That thought doesn't make very *happy* and it also doesn't make me very *hopeful,* even as I accept that it seems to be the pervasive *reality* we must all live with. 

But would I call it *"normal?"* Undecided, on that one...

Thanks for reading, and I hope you're all having a good week!

***How about YOU? Do you think we'll ever return to "normal?" Is "normal" even a real thing, or just a figment of our imaginations? Or is all we have merely "the next thing," whatever it may be? Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!***

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