Dealing with post-election despair

I don't often suffer from insomnia, but sleep came slowly after the outcome of the presidential election was announced ("Re-elected," Nov. 7). My good and valued friend of almost a half-century, Nat Asch, often says that "we're going to die at the right time." Not that he will say it this morning. Though I have not spoken with him yet today, I'm virtually certain he is delighted with the re-elected of President Barack Obama. (He and I approach most, though not all issues, from opposite ends of the political spectrum). I, on the other hand, am filled with a sense of acute despair. It probably won't last and, with the passage of time, will diminish to disappointment and, eventually, even that will likely be overcome by my native optimism. But not to the degree that was once possible.

November 8, 2012