So, what’s your favorite Bernie meme? I thought mine was the one where he was sitting selling Girl Scout cookies as I could relate to that so well but then came the one where he’s sitting in Archie Bunker’s chair – brilliant. Whether or not Bernie is your favorite politician, those memes of him have done a lot this week to start to heal a traumatized nation.

Humor brings people together. I believe it is one of the greatest gifts we have to offer and receive. Share a laugh with someone and you’ve bonded in a way that’s unique. I’ve been to clubs to see comedians where few people in the room look like me or share my values but for that 90 minutes or so, we are united in laughter. We all walk out chatting and laughing, not judging, or hating.

I belong to a few groups on FaceBook where someone posted “I don’t come here to see political photos.” I get it but you are missing the point. Most of the posts aren’t political. In the group I belong to for Sanibel Island fans, a woman was outraged to see his face on a beach photo. I’m outraged when I see yet another post in that group asking where the best place for pizza is, but I manage to scroll on by. (Note to FB group admins – instead of asking why someone wants to join a group, how about asking if they know how to use the search feature to look for stuff people have already posted about????)

Social media has become such a judgmental and harsh place to be. If you share an opinion, you’d better be ready for a discussion at best, attack at worst, on that opinion. There are few civil conversations anymore. Just scroll on by. Uniting isn’t about stomping out other people’s opinion or shoving yours down someone’s throat, it’s about finding common ground. Remember, just scroll on by.

I thought of a few funny Bernie meme ideas but was afraid the apps or websites suggested to make them would give my info directly to some hacker, although there’s not much left for them to find out about me with all the other data hacks I’ve been notified of. Still wondering what they are doing with the info about the notebooks and printer ink I bought at Staples…Anyhow, keep the fun coming and when this dies out, remember how one man, sitting in a chair wearing mittens on a cold day in DC, made the world smile. That’s unity.