选举之后

After any election—and the election of 2016 will go down in American history as one of the worst—there needs to be a time for the country to come together once again. Healing is a normal， healthy part of any good relationship.

在任何的选举之后，尤其是在将成为美国历史上最糟糕的一届选举的2016大选之后，国家再次达成一致需要一定时间。这段恢复期是任何良好关系中正常的、健康的一部分。

Healing after an election may not be easy for everyone， and it may be especially difficult this election year. But people must heal in order to move forward.

选举后的恢复期可能不是对每个人都很容易，尤其在这个选举年，可能会特别困难。但人们必须渡过这段恢复期，继续前进。

Historically， Americans have always been fairly good at letting bygones be bygones and moving on. Americans forgave （their brothers） after the terrible devastation1 wrought by the Civil War. A presidential election， all things considered， should be much easier.

从历史上看，美国人一直很擅长于让过去的就那样过去并继续向前。美国人在可怕的毁灭性的内战后原谅了（他们的兄弟们）。而一次总统选举，从各方面来考虑的话，应该要容易得多。

Many ordinary Americans find the election process—and government in general—frustrating， and uncaring of their needs and challenges. Elections give them a time to let out frustrations with the economy and governments seeming inability to “get things done”. No matter who is in power and who is nominated2， Americans pretty much complain about the same things every election cycle： taxes， lack of jobs， the economy， government interference3 in peoples lives， and so on.

许多普通的美国人发现选举过程和政府总体来说同样让人沮丧，都不关心他们的需求和挑战。选举给了他们时间来发泄对于经济方面以及政府似乎无法“把事情做好”上的沮丧。无论谁执掌权力和谁被任命，美国人都会抱怨很多每个选举周期里反复提到的东西：税收、就业不足、经济、政府干预人们的生活等等。

Smart Americans know that government is there to perform the basic functions that help guarantee their access4 to life， liberty， and the pursuit of happiness. Its not there to make sure people dont do dumb things， or make bad choices.

聪明的美国人知道政府要执行的基本功能在于帮助保障人们的生命安全、自由和追求幸福的权利，而不在于确保人们不做出愚蠢的事情，或者不做出错误的选择。

People also know that the ability to effect real change in America lies not with a President （who has specific， limited powers）， but with the legislative body—Congress5. If Americans really wanted the change they seem to clamor6 for every election cycle， theyd spend more time voting out the incumbents7 who failed to bring about the change desired.

人们也知道，真正有影响美国变化的能力的不在于有一个（有明确限制的权力的）总统，而在于立法机构——国会。如果美国人真的想改变，他们似乎要在每一个选举周期呼吁，他们会花更多的时间投票让未能带来预期改变的现任者下台。

Healing Begins at Home

家中的恢复期

If youve been on a different page than your spouse， partner， or kids during this election， its best to make amends and heal these interpersonal wounds first. Sometimes we say things we dont really mean in the heat of an argument. Now is the time to apologize for such remarks. But it is no excuse not to treat others with the same respect we all want and deserve.

如果在这次选举中你和你的配偶，同伴，或孩子的选择不同，最好首先开始弥补并治愈这些人际上的伤口。有时我们说出口的东西并不真的意味着要给一场争论火上浇油。现在是时候为这样的言论道歉了。但没有理由不以相同的尊重对待别人，而这些正是我们都想要的和应得的尊重。

Do you really want to sink a whole friendship—based upon years or even decades of shared experiences—over a single election？ For most people， the answer is no.

你真的想让一份友谊仅只是因为一场选举就此完全沉没，哪怕这段友谊有着几年甚至几十年的共同经历吗？对于大多数人来说，答案是否定的。

Healing Continues at Work & with Neighbors

工作场所和邻里之间的恢复期

Maybe youve had one of those yard signs on your front lawn that stood out among a sea of your opponents signs. Maybe youre the only one person in your office or on the job site who seemed to be for your candidate8. Its time to say， “Hey， that was some election， but Im glad its over and we can all get on with our lives”.

也许在你的草坪上有一个标志，在你对手的标志海洋中独树一帜。也许你是你的办公室或工作场所里唯一一个支持你候选人的人。是时候说，“嘿，那就是个选举，但我很高兴它终于结束了，我们可以继续我们的生活了”。

Theres no need to apologize for your choice of candidates or your passion in arguing for your candidate （as long as you were respectful when doing so）. If you did cross a line， you should try to find a quiet， private place to make your apologies to those you may have offended.

没有必要为选择你的候选人或为其与人争论的热情道歉（只要你在这样做时是有礼貌的）。如果你确实做得过分了，你应该试着找一个安静的、私人的地方，向那些你可能冒犯过的人道歉。

Healing Occurs in Government

政府的恢复期

Americans didnt elect politicians to sit in their chairs and make speeches that nobody listens to. They elected them to do their job of running this nations business and getting the job done. Any politician who refuses to do his or her job needs to resign or face not being re-elected come next election. Citizens have said time and time again that they want a government that does its job—not one that just obstructs work from being accomplished.

美国人没有选择让政治家坐在椅子上做没有人听的演讲。他们选举出那些人去履行他们的职责，管理这个国家，完成各自的工作。任何拒绝做他或她本职工作的政治家必须辞职或者面临下次选举不再当选的情况。公民们已经一次又一次地表明他们希望政府能履行它的本职工作——而不是妨碍工作的完成。

Heres to the next four years of coming together again， standing behind their President and elected officials， and moving forward. Because it is only together that they can make simple work of hard， complicated issues.

未来四年再次齐心协力，支持他们的总统和所选官员，并向前迈进。因为只有在一起，他们才能使困难、复杂的问题变得简单。