Trump, Trudeau, Palisades, a howling wolf moon, and a million-strong peace rally by a religious organization —this is not a rap song worthy of Snoop Dogg, but a rundown of input filling our senses these days. And it’s only halfway through January.

That people are unusually strung-up lately seems to reflect the uncontrollable wildfires that razed through Malibu homes recently. Embers of thought spark conversation about how the fires started, and what it meant, even dragging Meta and the Golden Globes into the picture.

With the midterm elections on the minds of Filipinos these days, last year’s electoral triumph enjoyed by Donald Trump still rings with uncertainty as many try to imagine what this second-time presidency will look like, not just for America, but for the world.

And with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing plans to step down once a new ruling party leader is chosen, the ground under our feet seemed to tilt even more. Not that his move had anything to do with us directly — it’s their politics, their issues, their national crises — but we must listen to the things these world leaders are saying to know why we must care.

It’s a world divided, clearly. As Donald Trump (and his Elon Musk connection) rises, Justin Trudeau steps down. The Canadian PM is known for “branding himself as an antidote to former US President Donald Trump,” a CNN World report goes.

And, today, a leader in their opposition party is spouting the same ideas as the American leader, particularly in terms of border and immigration policies.

On the other hand, Trudeau and his progressive ideas led him to send help to California recently (“Neighbors helping neighbors,” he tweeted), as well as to offer support whenever needed. “We rallied to support each other through the pandemic … to stand strong with Ukraine, and our democracy, to fight climate change, and to get our economy ready for the future,” he said in his resignation speech.

“We are at a critical moment in the world.”

It was a war of words that erupted between Trump and Trudeau over the former’s “51st state” comment, obviously meant to goad a reaction much like how social media has become a thriving platform for such “conversation.”

Of course, it’s not like we can stamp out a firestorm in the political world. Just imagine shushing a million-strong crowd of rallyists calling for peace and harmony. That gathering, large enough to serve as a “warning,” they say, still won’t be able to quiet the naysayers who are firing up X with demands to continue looking into Vice President Sara Duterte’s confidential funds controversy.

At times, it feels like a world gone mad, with some things we thought were never going to happen unfolding like so much reality TV, and some things we expected as a sure thing not happening at all.

It’s crazy enough to send people howling.

Can we blame it on the wolf moon?