Riding the High
Winning feels so good
You know those days after a really great day, when you wake up so happy and just bask in it all day long? That’s what November 6th was like. It reminded me of the day after the Cubs won the World Series in 2016 - the next day was a regular weekday, but everyone (at least around here) went around all day smiling at random strangers and just in the best mood. There were so many fun messages to send and laugh at.
Brian was busier than ever, working a mile a minute managing all the post-election news and data. The news was very, very good for him and for Catholic Vote. The exit poll numbers showed that Trump had won the Catholic vote by at least 15 points, 56% to 41%, a huge swing from 2020. State by state, the numbers were even more impressive - showing swing states like Michigan and Pennsylvania at +20 and +14 among Catholics. Overall, a resounding success for every state and every issue where Brian had concentrated his efforts. Notes of congratulations and thanks for his work came pouring in.
A surprise delivery showed up midday from Martin and Thérèse, along with sweet notes of congratulations from the other kids - they were all so proud of their dad: “This is the best day of my life,” “The flag still stands for freedom, and they can’t take that away,” “It’s Christmas Day but better,” “Been cackling like Kamala all morning,” “Joy cometh in the MORNING.” Bridget sent a playlist called “Trump is your President.” We were far away from each other and working our normal school and work routines, but celebrating together anyway in spirit.
The next day the reading for morning prayer in my Magnificat seemed so appropriate:
“I will take you away from among the nations, gather you from all the foreign lands, and bring you back to your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you to cleanse you from all your impurities, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you, taking from your bodies your stony hearts and giving you natural hearts. I will put my spirit within you and make you live by my statutes, careful to observe my decrees. You shall live in the land I gave your fathers; you shall be my people, and I will be your God.” (Ezekiel 36:24-28).
Alright, so we’ve got a ways to go America, but all of a sudden it seemed like we could breathe a sigh of relief and hope in the future. Welcome to the Golden Age, we gleefully proclaimed. And we didn’t feel so alone anymore. Maybe, just maybe, there were enough Americans to turn this thing around.
A good friend sent congratulatory Trump wine a few days later.
Meanwhile, as the world settled into the reality of Trump’s victory, everyone who had worked to get him elected started to think about their next move and jockey for position in the administration. Brian started to think about what would be next for him. He felt like he had won a Super Bowl ring, and the question was where did he go from there. While he knew he could probably get a job in the administration given how much he had done for Trump, we weren’t thrilled about the idea of moving to DC. It must have been around this time that the idea of Ambassador to the Vatican seemed a remote but intriguing possibility. But as we learned more about who actually gets nominated to be Ambassadors, it didn’t seem very likely. Nope, we’re not billionaire donors looking for a posh European gig as a reward for support. Still, we wondered what the future would hold.
One Saturday morning in mid-November, Brian and I sat in the living room drinking our coffee. I didn’t even know what the Surrender Novena was and had never prayed it before, but I must have seen it mentioned in an article somewhere because suddenly it popped into my head and I said, “I think we should do the Surrender Novena to pray about what you’re going to do next.” Brian looked at me strangely. “That’s funny,” he said. “That’s what John Martin told me I need to do. I have it on my desk!” He got up and walked into the library and came back with a small folded prayer card with this beautiful novena on it. We started praying it that morning. We went on to pray it three times in a row (for 27 days).
Brian was still doing a lot of traveling - the weekend after the election he went to a Las Vegas conference with a bunch of bigwigs to debrief the win and strategize for the future. We still prayed the novena together every day, sometimes in person, sometimes over the phone at the end of a long day. Through all the uncertainty and stress that went along with our crazy, busy life, these beautiful prayers brought comfort and peace. I remember saying the prayers in the car on Thanksgiving morning as we drove over to Brian’s mom’s house in Flagstaff, AZ. A couple of the cousins and our two youngest girls were in the car with us and listened. Frannie said “that’s really beautiful!”
Life continued busier than ever and full of exciting events. Ella’s birthday, then the girls and I flew out to Phoenix to see the cousins in their Annie play. They homeschooled that next week while we waited for Brian and the boys to join us for the Purple and Thanksgiving.
The boys arrived for the weekend and “The Purple” golf tournament, which I hoped would finally give Brian a chance to relax for a minute. He enjoyed the golf and hanging out with friends, but of course Fox News called and wanted him on at 5 am the morning of the second day. He debated for a while whether or not to do it but eventually decided to drive back from the golf tournament at a resort outside the city late Saturday night, catch a few hours of sleep, wake up at 3 am and head to the studio to film the hit, then drive back out and finish his golf. Crazy man. All in 100%.
We did have a wonderful time in Phoenix though, especially spending time with our granddaughter Joan, our older kids who live there, and Brian’s mom. We finally got to take a 5 generation photo one night when Brian’s grandma was over for dinner!
It’s a crazy, wonderful life.
Brian and I also got to do a quick trip to San Diego for a night to meet with a CV donor. I love being able to tag along on quick trips with him…dinner at a French restaurant, a night at a resort, a morning walk along the ocean watching the ridiculous seals and frizzing up my hair with the humidity, then our meeting and back to the airport to fly back to Phoenix. From Phoenix, we drove up to Flagstaff for a few days to meet the rest of the family for Thanksgiving. Libby also got to celebrate her birthday up there at Uncle Pat and Aunt Mary’s ranch complete with her favorite horses.
One morning as I went for a walk, I took this photo of Humphreys Peak.
To top off our great trip, Sam and Finn won the Burch Pitch Tournament. Sadly, Finn had to leave to go back to school before he got to pose with his co-champion and the trophy.
