Yesterday was Ring Day at the O’Brien household. Oct. 25 is the anniversary of the day Linda and I bought our wedding rings down in Washington, D.C. back in 1997. We always remember how we lingered in the car, wanting to be sure, before we hopped out and bought those rings. The person who sold them to us was an older white-haired woman named Hilda, and she made a gentle point of letting us know that couples she sold rings to often brought her a gift from their honeymoon. Each year, we laugh remembering her, and wonder if she made a mental note that we never showed up again. I enjoy surprising Linda with a card in the morning each year. It’s all the more fun, because Linda always forgets the date, so I score a lot of points! The custom serves to add another log to the fire of our love. We’ve never regretted that first Ring Day.

Speaking of rings, I’ve been ringing door bells, canvassing for U.S. Congress candidate, Democrat Talley Sergent. Among other things, she wants to address the opioid crisis in our state. She’s running against incumbent Republican Alex Mooney, whom I think fondly of as “Absentee Al.” Has anyone sighted him lately? His solution to the opioid crisis is “they need to pull themselves up by their boot straps.” He is also happy to accept donations from the pharmaceutical industry, which seems to see no problem with helping spread the crisis. I wrote to him recently about conserving our environment. He wrote back, describing our local parks, and telling me he really cares about it all and that’s why he is working to conserve the environment while “stimulating the economy and creating jobs.” Usually that means mega gougers first, environment second. Many politicians seem to think that their constituents are basically stupid. From the two times I’ve met her, that’s one of the many things I like about Talley Sergent — she’s a knowledgeable, authentic human being.

Speaking of crisis, our democracy is in one. The Republican Party has been plotting for decades to recast the U.S. in their own image — keeping things as they are, for white folks, males and the moneyed classes. It involves focusing intently on the state races, so they can control gerrymandering and keep a watchful eye on restraining the voting rights of those they consider undesirable.

Well, if you would like to subvert the prevailing paradigm and expand your friends’ consciousness, may I humbly suggest giving my book, “Wise Guyde: The First Forty-Five Columns” as a gift during the Season of Light approaching. It’s available at Four Seasons Books here in Shepherdstown. It’s a threefer: you support your friends, our book store and yours truly. Think how good you’ll feel.

Bill O’Brien is a consciousness coach and shamanic practitioner. He and his wife Linda have lived in Shepherdstown since 2005. He can be reached at billobrienconsciousnesscoach@gmail.com