To say that my political views have changed over time would be an understatement. For the life of me, I can’t understand how political views cannot change in this ever changing world and at this moment in time, things are changing very quickly and if one is to stagnate and rest on one’s laurels then one risks being left out in the cold.

I remember back in high school noticing the shift. My family had always been conservative in their beliefs and voted along Republican Party lines and perhaps it was the need to be rebellious or acting out, I took a more democratic approach to how I viewed the world. That stuck with me for quite sometime until years later when the democrats got more liberal in their positions and then my own pendulum swung back towards the republicans…a position that I’ve held until recently wheee I find myself not fully on board with either party. Lately I have started making a more conscious effort to see both sides of each issue and I don’t know where that puts me in the political spectrum. There’s no right or wrong side to any of the issues that the country faces.

I’ve even changed my stance on voting as if I can’t in good conscience agree with everything a candidate campaigns on, then my vote will be withheld. I noticed a trend not to long ago in my own voting record. With the exception of Bill Clinton in 1996, I have consistently voted for the candidate who failed to win. The only candidate for president since then who has won since then was when I registered myself as a write in candidate in 2016. Of course I did not win the election and have no memory of serving in that capacity but I did win something intangible from that experience. I won peace of mind.

I was reminded of this when earlier this year I did a google search of myself and saw the strange listing pictured above. I found it amusing as it relates to something I did in the past and was listed as past tense as well. Did I really win back then? Was this a glimpse into the future of something that I was going to do later in time? Am I now living in some alternate reality? The questions could go on and on.

While I know that if given the opportunity to serve in that official capacity I would do a great job, it has not happened yet and perhaps it is just some cruel joke that the universe is playing with me as I pondered this listing a lot , and maybe too much, as to how to make this fabrication a reality. I have to wonder what anyone else would have done if they saw something like this attached to their name?

So have my political views changed, the answer is yes. We have a lot of problems in the country and in the world and each one of those problems don’t have a clear cut and dry solution. Will the incoming administration be successful? That remains to be seen and while there are a lot of good positions Donald Trump has taken and I do believe he means well, there are some other positions he has taken and surrounded himself with some people who might not have the country’s best interests at heart that are giving me reasons to be concerned. One thing that is for sure, the next few years are going to be interesting.