Late last Friday afternoon I went for a bike ride. I chased dirt roads through a neighborhood forest, spooked some deer, enjoyed cool weather, and kept an eye on the cloudy and darkening skies. My only goal was to get back to my truck before the sun set. 

It felt nice to be out and it was a good ride, but… It left me unsettled, divided within, and talking to myself. How could you go for a bike ride at a time like this? 

It was just two days after a federal agent, with the authority and now, apparently, the approval of the United States government, murdered Renee Nicole Good, an American citizen, in an American city. 

The lies, spins, deflections, and justifications of the Trump administration cannot convince my eyes they did not see what they saw. And my ears cannot unhear the fourth gunshot, “F***ing b***ch.” This government that is supposed to be “of the people, by the people, for the people,” has turned on the people.

And you went for a bike ride? How can you go about life as usual after what has happened? You should do something, call somebody, get involved. But a bike ride, really?

Maybe you feel that disconnect or contradiction in your life too. Maybe you’re feeling horror, fear, and anger over what happened and is continuing to happen. Maybe you are feeling overwhelmed and powerless. Maybe you also are wondering what you can do. 

How can we go on with life as normal when our government is so intentionally violent, retributive, cruel, and bankrupt of normalcy? What is being asked of us? Surely, it’s something more than a bike ride.

That’s the conversation I had with my spiritual director a couple of days after my bike ride. He suggested that a bike ride just might be a very appropriate response. 

Normalcy as Resistance

It’s not so much about the bike ride or the other usual rhythms and routines of my life. It’s about normalcy. The country today, he said, is crying out for normalcy. I am crying out for normalcy. Normalcy is an antidote to the current poison of abnormalcy.

I’ve thought a lot about what he said, what it means, and what it doesn’t mean. It doesn’t mean going on with life as if nothing is wrong, as if the murder did not happen and other atrocities are not happening. And it doesn’t mean becoming passive, giving up, and doing nothing. 

Maybe that’s exactly what the administration is counting on us doing. What if the cruelty, violence, and brutality are intentional attempts to disrupt the normalcy of all our lives? Attempts to obtain “anticipatory obedience.” (Snyder, On Tyranny, 18) What if the chaos being created is with the intention of injecting chaos into each of our lives? And what if we responded with normalcy?

To respond with normalcy is not a denial of the reality of what is happening. It is an act of resistance to that reality. It’s, at least in part, a reclaiming of my life, my agency, and some sense of power. Maybe it can be a witness and encouragement to others. 

Though it might be a part of our normalcy, I don’t just mean following the usual daily or weekly routines. I’m more interested in normalcy as way of being; the normalcy of who we are, how we live, and the faith and values that establish our priorities, guide our lives, and determine our words and actions. 

A Pledge to Normalcy

What if we made a pledge to normalcy? What would that look like for you? What would it mean? Here’s what I’m thinking about for myself.

I pledge – 

• To meet strangers with trust, to make eye contact, smile, and say, “Hello.”
• To stay informed but not let myself be consumed by the news or to live too far out in a future I do not yet have.
• To not just say my prayers but to be a person of prayer; to find times of silence, stillness, and solitude; to be self-reflective, listen more than I speak, and ask good questions.
• To strengthen existing relationships, establish new ones, and not let myself become isolated.
• To weep; to feel my heartbreak, fear, anger, and grief; to laugh, play, and not take myself too seriously; to live with hope, not as a substitute for action but as the basis for and beginning of action (Solnit, Rebecca, Foreword to the Third Edition, Hope in the Dark, xviii).
• To financially support organizations that support immigrants and other vulnerable populations, and groups that work for human dignity, equality, and the civil and constitutional rights of people; to seek involvement beyond monetary donations.  
• To “persevere in resisting evil,” to “seek and serve Christ in all persons,” to “strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being” (Book of Common Prayer, 304-305); to not add to the pain of our country or another’s life; to practice nonviolence; to find others with whom to make meaningful change.
• To experience beauty, express creativity, imagine what might be; to invest in people and relationships; to live in gratitude; to tend and care for my marriage, my neighbor, and myself. 
• To call and write my senators and representatives; to learn more about my community’s needs, issues, and politics; to communicate, organize, and act.
• To go for a bike ride more often. 

How about you? What’s your pledge to normalcy?

I don’t offer my pledge as the answer, the fix, the solution. It’s just one man’s response, a resistance to evil, and an attempt to live faithfully. And it feels so inadequate. There will always be more to do. But that doesn’t mean I can’t do something now. I believe “that what we do matters even though how and when it may matter, who and what it may impact, are not things we can know beforehand.” (Ibid., xiv)

I think Jesus knew something about normalcy as resistance. I think that’s a part of what is happening on the road to Jerusalem.

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way. (Luke 13:31-33)

Maybe it’s a warning from the Pharisees. Maybe it’s a threat from Herod. Regardless, Jesus refuses to let their words change the direction of his life. He will not betray himself, the values that define and guide his life, who he is, or what he is about. He remains true to what is normal for him. It’s a witness we still talk about today. We even call it the good news.

That’s how I want to live. I want to “be on my way.” What about you?

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Image Credit: Photo by Samuel Field on Unsplash.