“I’m every woman….” and every man, Democrat, Republican, cis-gendered, woke liberal, religious conservative, LGBQTAI+ aligned, Black, brown, mixed race person, et al, and "It’s all in me."

Yes, I’m a little bit of everyone right now; still feeling a wide range of postelection emotions.

Watching the daily news reinforces my sympathy and identification with all those who are wondering what will happen next.

The latest set of headlines throw into clear focus the uncertainty and inevitability of change.

The multiple blaring headlines predicting the consequences of the last presidential election offer up harbingers of the awfully good, or very bad things to come. Even some of the newly elected and empowered have expressed a “wait and see’’ attitude.

Reports about the transition team, appointments to the Cabinet, as well as other leadership roles under consideration have served up a daily fodder of punditry; an unhealthy diet at best.

I’m simply not losing any sleep over any of the predictions. I know that nothing is for certain except we all have finite lives, and what matters most is how gracefully we get through to the end, election outcomes be damned.

It’s the in-between that matters most, and so far, nothing in the political sphere has killed me, or you.

After all, we in America, are not living in the bulls’-eye of any enemy weapons, no matter how loud the threatening sabers are rattled.

With some more luck, no more lifethreatening pandemics will adversely affect us in the near future since we should have learned invaluable lessons from the recent covid virus to lessen tragic outcomes, i.e., having an adequate stockpile of medical supplies, improved emergency response training, and an upgraded communications system, etc.

Natural catastrophes are most often unpredictable and out of our control. But the damage and destruction that follows have been better managed after each occurrence.

This is a relatively peaceful and calm moment to be living in, barring anything catastrophic and unforeseen. Yes, there are data analysts who use certain models to game out various scenarios and measure their impact on us, and their public reports keep us informed and/or on edge.

For instance, I am always amazed at how the various hurricane models have kept millions out of danger. If only more folk would follow instructions and believe in the science of forecasting.

The gravely harmful events that we can predict are so few in number. The stock market has (predictably) risen and fallen constantly; wages, jobs, and cost of living indices shift on a regular basis. Just within the past week, mortgage rates were predicted to stall the growth in the real estate industry, again, even though we know that folk will continue to buy and sell homes, despite the published indicators.

So, instead of being a doomsday crier, I have been stocking up on my supply of positivity. I am increasing my regular workout routine, lowered my sugar intake, and loaded up on great literature to feed my imagination for good and creative outcomes still yet to be identified.

Pollyannaish?

No survivalist.

Four more years, eight more years and possibly beyond, is simply unpredictable. Too much can happen in between those years.

The Middle East peace talks are a prime example of the edge-of-yourseat daily fodder. Who can keep up? Creation of A Way of the World board game would be fascinating. Imagine if China implodes from population unrest and revolution; or if India devolves into a civil war between Hindus and Muslims along with a breakaway Sikh nation; and if the Middle East literally gets blown off the map by all those cousins fighting one another; or if Europe rises again by strengthening its African surrogates and defeats Russia in Uganda or the Congo? What about a popular coup in South America? It’s endless.

Just this week we watched in prime time how Syria’s Assad regime was overthrown and now we’re all waiting for what is still unknown. The coup has already shaken world alliances and poses a unique opportunity for the incoming administration to respond. How? It’s anyone’s guess.

Alas, Americans only remotely experience so much of what is happening in the world. But how much longer will we get to enjoy this relative stability and remain out of the bull’s-eye?

Long.

So, my first order of business during the transition and post-Jan. 20 is to complete researching and writing the origin story of my African family founders in America, tracing back to 1795! Bet that can’t be trumped.