Summer is here...
the perfect time to 
pack up those
tents and sleeping bags
and journey to
the great outdoors.

Our country is filled with
beautiful National Parks
waiting to be explored!

Here's the added benefit of camping this summer...

Campgrounds are truly PURPLE places.

Head to your local campground and see for yourself...

In one camp site
you'll see a vehicle with a
"Feel the Bern" bumper sticker
and in the next, 
you'll find a vehicle labeled
"Make American Great Again."

Conservatives and liberals
coexist peacefully,
even
​happily 
in our nation's campgrounds.

Why is that?

We're all there for the same reason.

We want to enjoy nature.
We want to see the stars.
We want to escape
our phones
and our computers
and our social media accounts
and just
​BE. 

It's truly a purple activity.

Camping allows us to
connect
with our fellow Americans
and appreciate that we
all 
 enjoy the immense
natural beauty of our country. 

Why not give it a try?

Maybe a little time spent as
happy campers in the
great outdoors 
can help open doors and
bring us closer
together.

Happy Father's Day!

This week,
we'll share a little wisdom from the
Father of our Country,
​George Washington.

When he was a teenager,
Washington copied down 110
"Rules of Civility"
which he adapted from a
set of popular rules developed by
French Jesuits in the 16th Century.

Several of these guidelines
could still
help us with our
purple conversations
today! 

Here are a few highlights 
from www.mountvernon.org... 

RULE NO. 22
Shew not yourself glad at the
Misfortune of another though he were your enemy.

RULE NO. 50
Be not hasty to beleive
flying Reports to the Disparag[e]ment of any.

RULE NO. 58
Let your Conversation be without Malice or Envy,
for 'tis a Sig[n o]f a Tractable and Commendable Nature:
And in all Causes of Passion [ad]mit Reason to Govern.

RULE NO. 65
Speak not injurious Words neither in Jest nor Earnest
Scoff at none although they give Occasion.

RULE NO. 73
Think before you Speak pronounce not imperfectly
nor bring ou[t] your Words too hastily but orderly & distinctly.

RULE NO. 74
When Another Speaks be attentive your Self and disturb not the Audience if any hesitate in his Words help him not nor Prompt him without desired,
Interrupt him not,
nor Answer him till his Speec[h] be ended.

RULE NO. 76
While you are talking, Point not with your Finger at him of Whom you Discourse nor Approach too near him to whom you talk especially to his face.

RULE NO. 86
In Disputes, be not So Desireous to Overcome
as not to give Liberty to each one to deliver his Opinion
and Submit to the Judgment of the Major Part especially if they are Judges of the Dispute.

RULE NO. 89
Speak not Evil of the absent for it is unjust.

RULE NO. 105
Be not Angry at Table whatever happens & if you have reason to be so, shew it not but on a Chearfull Countenance especially if there be Strangers for Good Humour makes one Dish of Meat a Feas[t].

And, George Washington's final rule of civility...

RULE NO. 110
Labour to keep alive in your Breast that
Little Spark of Ce[les]tial fire Called Conscience.

Let's try to keep that
"little spark of celestial fire"
burning brightly
as we all work
together
to treat each other with
greater civility!

Last week brought this
unexpected twitter exchange
between
Democratic Representative
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
and
Republican Senator
Ted Cruz.

The two political rivals
have found a purple point!

It's refreshing to see
lawmakers from
opposite sides
of the aisle
focus on something
they can accomplish
together.

What do YOU think?

Do you agree
that there should be 
limitations
on
lobbying
for those who
have
served in Congress?  

Let them know!