Universal Father, Ever-present Mother, Collective wisdom of our highest selves,

I thank you for the grace bestowed upon our family in this experiment of humankind,

Where we declared the self-evident truths of men created equally, endowed with rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,

And founded our country on that promise.

I thank you for the abolition of the stain of slavery and for healing our country after the terrible fight.

I thank you for the progress of civil liberty for women and men and for our unbending commitment to allowing all truths to be spoken.

Our country was born of three masters –  the judicial heart, the legislative mind and the executive torso – set in tension so that none would rise above the other.

For over 228 years, we have peacefully transitioned to new governments.

Thank you for this blessing.

On this day, we are reminded that our Republic is a precious and fragile agreement.

We pray that humanity’s great experiment to grant the will of the people will continue.

Please deliver us from forces that would lay waste to the votes of any citizen.  

Deliver us from complacency and ignorance.  

Provide us with the light of factual information, credible experts and impartial information sources.  Knowledge can light us up and mis-information can corrupt our spirit.

Please help us find our voice in the face of corruption and hatred.

If tyranny is alive, silence is indeed violence.

May our children and the generations beyond, find a world where we decided to invest in our people over corporations.

In the spirit of the Executive, Legislative and Judicial, Amen.

– Skip Shuda, Jan. 6, 2022