In the run up to last week there was a great deal of discussion given on how to avoid talking about the current political climate at family gatherings. Don’t bring up who won. Don’t bring up who lost. Don’t rub your third cousin’s neighbor’s nephew’s dog’s nose in the news. Don’t do it. Just keep your domestic tranquility in the forefront of your thoughts.

It is for the best we heard. Leaving the discussion alone will help digest the turkey and the stuffing and the desserts we were told.

Even on Black Friday while we celebrated Capitalism at its finest and the death of a dictator at his worst, the undercurrent of political discussion was there. Standing in line at a coffee shop to order the nectar of the heavens there was talk about who won the election. While waiting to check out at a department store the talk was not of the deals that were being sought, no there were several people who were still irritated by the results.

As someone who intensely follows politics, I was looking for a way out of the news, the discussions. Even I felt like I needed a break. Hope for a return to normal conversations seemed to be lost.

Just as I thought that all was lost, two things happened that helped restore my faith in the idea that we were more than the sum of our political parts. Brunswick held its annual tree lighting event and the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens held their Gardens Aglow.

For a tree lighting, there is no better location than on the Mall in Brunswick. It is large enough to accommodate the throng of people that come to take part and it is small enough that people can see all that is taking place.

What really makes the tree lighting special is that people from all over Brunswick and the area could delight in song and hot chocolate. Hay rides and Frosty the Snowman. Neighbors and friends. You could get lost in the pageantry of just watching each other enjoy a good time.

If the tree lighting is a good time, then Gardens Aglow is that on steroids. I am not much of a flower enthusiast. Sure, I like looking at flowers in my yard, but I am not one to fuss over planting bulbs or being peculiar about a petunia.

When my wife said that we were going I was completely indifferent to the idea. What I found though was that I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed the colored lights and the color schemes that played out, but I enjoyed the atmosphere. Just like the tree lighting, there were hundreds of people who were pleasant and just plain kind.

Among the hundreds of thousands of small lights there were people posing for photos. Complete strangers offering their services as cell phone paparazzi to all who were near. No one asking if they thought a certain way. No one asking if they voted a certain way. There were people taking pictures of the scene and loving every minute of it.

There was even one middle aged gentleman who was walking around playing Christmas music. As he told us, “You got a phone and Pandora. What a better way to get into the spirit?” I had to agree.

Above all else, everyone was happy. There was joking and laughter and friends and strangers alike enjoying each other’s company. No politics. No snide comments about a candidate. No talk of recounts. No talk about going low and going lower. Just plain, good old fashioned fun.

While everyone has been so angry as of late they have managed to stop thinking about the one constant in life. In order to come together for the betterment of all of us, we are going to have to continue to learn to live with each other. Only at that point can we all start rowing in the same direction and right the ship.

That’s my two cents…

Jonathan Crimmins lives in Brunswick and can be reached at j_ [email protected].