Oh Girl! You Need To Retake That Course!

In a plot twist that even Hollywood couldn't script, Donald Trump snagged the Presidential Election, and suddenly, I found myself being blamed for it on Facebook Messenger. Yep, a stranger decided my singular vote had magical powers to sway the entire election, despite not knowing who I voted for—or if I even voted at all!

This digital detective, irked by my comment on a mutual friend's post a month ago, seemed to have stored up her outrage and crowned me the ultimate scapegoat. For the record, Trump scooped up 312 Electoral votes and over 74 million popular votes, while yours truly accounted for just one teeny-tiny vote. If that's not a stretch, I don't know what is!

Here's the kicker—this online critic is a certified mental health counselor specializing in Anger Management, touting best practices with empathy, impeccable ethics and boundaries. Yep, you read that right. With all that expertise, I expected a more zen-like approach—or none at all, considering ..... WE DON'T KNOW EACH OTHER! She needs to retake some of her courses!

Pro tip for everyone out there: if you're chewing out someone five states away for exercising the same voting rights you have, it's time for a rethink. For all she knew, I could have been linked to the mob! (For the record, I’m not.) but I've crossed paths with some pretty sketchy characters in my day. She doesn't know my friends!

Oh, and to add an insult to the injury.... she wrote me on the anniversary of my dad's passing to launch her critique—not that I'm one to wallow, but shouldn't mental health counselors be the last people playing "Push the Button"? Pretty sure rule #1 is knowing you never fully know what someone’s going through.

You know that saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover"? Well, underestimating me is like mistaking Beth from Yellowstone for a Sunday school teacher. Bold move. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t end well (iykyk).

Everyone's allowed to have their feelings, but accountability's still a thing, especially when it infringes on someone else's rights and descends into name-calling and family threats. Given her profession, her actions reveal more about her than me, and if I can prevent her from bullying others, it's worth the effort. So I let her company know what kind of counselor was helping their clients. Sometimes people need a nudge to remind them when they're off-track. And if I can prevent this counselor from treating others with such disrespect, then it's a win-win in my book. After all, empathy and accountability should go both ways, no matter who you're interacting with.

Remember, the internet's a two-way street, and while everyone deserves a little grace, it's important to know when to hit the brakes.