By Darren Starwynn

Many are saying the US mid-term elections in two weeks is the “most important election of our lifetimes” and I agree with that.  I’ve been donating money, doing volunteer work to increase voter turnout and doing my own inner work to try to be part of a positive solution.

Stories and myths are full of archetypal images that can help us look deeper into what is happening in our world and see our true path more clearly.  I, and millions of other people have loved Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings books and the movies that came out of them.  I will share a valuable parallel between this epic story and what is happening in this election that I hope touches you.

In Lord of the Rings book three, Return of the King, there is major warfare going on between the overwhelming dark forces of Mordor under the rule of Sauron and an alliance desperately trying to save Middle Earth from downfall and domination.  Although the heroes and heroines of Middle Earth were fighting valiantly, they were outnumbered and were losing the last great battle.  All hope was slipping away for saving the world from a takeover by the dark forces of repression and destruction of nature.

The only hope for salvation was with two weary hobbits – Frodo and Samwise – who were on a seemingly impossible mission to walk through Mordor, slip past legions of powerful, evil forces and destroy the One Ring that was the basis for Sauron’s power.  Hobbits were the smallest and weakest of all the forces defending Middle Earth, and yet this most crucial task fell to them.  Even though every possible setback happened to Frodo and Samwise, somehow they did accomplish their task, with the help of Gollum, and Middle Earth was saved and the dark forces vanquished.

So what does all this have to do with our mid-term elections?  A lot!

I see some major parallels, and also one crucial difference, both of which are very valuable to consider.

It seems that the Republican Party has become dominated by an extremist, power-grabbing minority that has had great success under the leadership of Trump.  They now control both houses of Congress, the Supreme Court, the Presidency and rapidly increasing numbers of judicial positions.  From my perspective, they are taking a dark path of denying climate change, un-doing decades of environmental protections, suppressing votes of poor minorities in many States, creating trade wars, reinforcing male chauvinist attitudes toward women, supporting a brutal war in Yemen and emboldening white supremacists.  For these reasons they DO remind me of the forces of Mordor!  And in win after win since Trump’s election this movement could seem all-powerful and unstoppable, just like Mordor.

So who are Frodo and Samwise in this analogy?  To me they are the commonsense, pure-hearted and innocent parts of ourselves that are willing to join the Fellowship of the Light and stand up for what is right.  We hold a surprising power to turn things around when we refuse to go into despair about the seemingly overwhelming power of Mordor and take positive action from our Consciousness.

So don’t go into despair and overwhelm!  You / We are much more powerful than we acknowledge!  In his landmark book Power vs Force David Hawkins explains how one person holding a high level of spiritual Light can counter-balance hundreds of thousands to millions of people vibrating at lower states of consciousness.

This mid-term election represents a vital point of decision for our country – to either validate and encourage the direction Trump and the extreme elements of the Republican party are going in, or repudiate it and create a more balanced government that will find better ways that represent all people and the Earth.

So that is the parallel between Lord of the Rings and this election – even though the odds may seem so daunting, people of good heart can prevail when we have the courage to stand up for what we believe, join together and take action.

The big difference between Lord of the Rings and what I believe is the higher path forward is that Lord of the Rings story is based on duality and polarity – the light forces vs the dark forces, “us” against “them”.  If we follow that mindset we give our true power away.   In this time of Ascension we need to outgrow our addiction to polarity and see that behind all appearances to the contrary, and at our core, we are all One.  THAT is how we claim our greatest power to be the solution for our lives and our planet.

So I am learning to do what has seemed to be a difficult dance – hold Trump and his cronies in love and see them all as expressions of God – Universal Energy – the collective mind of humanity.  Refuse to go into angry, self-righteous and polarized attitudes toward “them” – WHILE taking decisive actions to stand up for what I believe in.  Could seem like a mind-bender, and it is!

I’d love to hear your perspectives on this!

There are loads of volunteer opportunities in your area you can find to help encourage higher voter turnout for this vital election.  Here is one good example.