Reflections On The Pain Of Rejection

With the sudden terminations of Acting Attorney General, Sally Yates and National Security Advisor, Mike Flynn, our new President maintains his ruthless legacy of “firing” people at will. Observing his sense of entitlement as a billionaire celebrity star, he has continued to polish his media image well. * However, as the daily rants and narcissistic side effects of his Presidential “Reality Show” performances increasingly fail to entertain me, the timing is right to refocus my mind on more positive thoughts by switching to a more relaxing channel. Perhaps I will try the one below: “The Relaxing and Chill Out Channel.”

Looking more deeply at these terminations, questions arise about the emotional ramifications arising from his career-crashing decisions. Did our executive leader feel empathy for any of his chosen victims in such trying times? What emotional trauma occurred for those who were selected for these unfortunate acts of dismissal?

Recalling my classroom image as a college professor, what if I had similarly provoked antagonism by “booting out” those academically challenged students in public who fell behind in my remedial reading class? I vividly remember one, homeless student, explain to me that his house was his car, while refusing to live homelessly on the streets. I also recall a divorced mother, working two jobs, who left her children outside my classroom unsupervised as she attended my class. I can also bring back memories of a veiled, Islamic woman who could not stay for the entirety of my class lectures on certain days due to her need to worship Allah dutifully. In each of these three cases , I chose to dignify their continued presence by finding ways to teach them effectively in spite of their obvious classroom challenges.

I also picture my identity crisis in 1993, of becoming unemployed as a middle school teacher after twelve years of dedicated service. Dreading the prospect of involuntarily leaving my chosen career, then, I distinctly recall a crisis of my own self-worth. However, I took self-responsibility to finish my Educational Specialist Degree, ultimately resulting in a successful, thirteen year, teaching stint as a tenured, college professor..

Thus, it is logical then for me to ponder how our Commander-In- Chief would put out his own “fire of rejection”? In particular, how would he react to an impartial investigation of his Russian ties and possible impeachment? Would he display the same intolerance of criticism that he displayed during the primaries and early days of his Presidency? Does his latest tirades at Thursday’s press comference indicate his desire to dismiss reporters in the traditional media, which would impair the public’s capacity to stay adequately informed?

Another kind of emotional rejection is occurring today. There is evidence that the current, political climate may be causing serious, emotional backlash among our entire populace. Multiple sources from a survey recently conducted by Harris Poll, found that 66 percent of Americans reported stress about the future of the country, 57 percent about the current political climate and 49 percent about our election outcome. Other surveys taken record similar results as well. If these ominous trends continue, our system of “checks and balances” must inevitably “save the day” to restore a more humane democracy.

*Note: A high-level, African-American aide to Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, Shermichael Singleton, has just been fired by President Trump for once writing an Op-Ed. in the New York Times that opposed Mr. Trump’s election policies.