Dear Mr President. It is time to concede.

It’s time to concede.

I get it, this is hard. You lost and nobody likes to lose. Whether I agreed with how you ran the country or not is irrelevant. In the end, this is the moment that is going to matter more than anything else you said and did. This is the choice that will be remembered. So, what are you choosing?

As you navigate these times, which I am sure are filled with anger, resentment, sadness, loss, grief, anxiety, stress, hurt, and pain remember that you have a choice. And this choice is huge – I truly believe that what you choose now will influence the rest of your life.

Think of those moments where, when you forget that everyone is watching, you feel a stillness. What does that feel like for you? Perhaps it’s in the early hours of the morning, or as you step outside and breathe in the fresh air? Perhaps it’s when you see your children happy, or take that first sip of a really perfect cup of coffee? In those moments, when it feels as though no one is watching, there is a glimpse of something else; a shimmer of another way to live. That is where the answer lies.

It’s in this stillness, this shimmering, fleeting moment of authenticity and light that the things that matter most become brilliantly clear. What do you see?

Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe you’re just not quite ready to see these moments. Grief is good at getting in the way of stillness; of clouding the light. As does the strength of one’s grip on the past. I worry that this might be your obstacle. I worry that you are holding on so tight to your defenses and your pretenses that you cannot see that your hands are bleeding.

Take a breath, Mr President. Allow yourself to exhale and release your grip. Allow yourself a moment of stillness to see the consequences of what you are choosing at this time in your life.

You made mistakes. But admitting those mistakes does not make you weak. In fact, it’s the opposite. It takes far more courage to admit when one is wrong than to hold on to the defense that “it’s not me, it’s you”. Courage cannot exist without the willingness to be emotionally vulnerable.

Show your supporters what it means to be brave. Show your supporters that you can step out of the shoes that are hurting you and others and choose to stand on the soil of humility. Show your supporters that to lose with acceptance is to lose with dignity.

Show your adversaries that you honor and respect their voices. Show your adversaries that you can see differences in opinion as being the foundation for growth and potential. Show your adversaries that you are courageous enough to admit that you caused harm; and courageous enough to recognize the power of your humble silence as that harm is healed.

It is time to concede, Mr President.