People like to say that as you get older, you become more conservative. It’s been the exact opposite for me and I have my parents to thank. They never pushed political or religious bullshit on me, but I saw their humanist accepting personalities and it shaped me more than either of them ever knew.

I’ve gotten more confident in my views and try to convey that the only way to survive is as a working class collective that doesn’t fall for political theater like we constantly see today. It’s lead me to be more supportive of others at work, to be more nuanced, and it’s helped me become a better leader and teacher.

It’s helped me settle into who I actually am and has allowed me to better tune out the constant noise from people that can’t help but cheer on political demagogues and their pointless nonsense.