The Other Way

It seems to me that we live in a world with so many angry people.  Anger fills our TVs, social media, the highways, and the streets.  It is even more pronounced when some event takes place which ignites fear.  Anger is a by-product of being fearful.  When people are scared, feel as though they are losing control, or simply don’t know what to do, they can easily find anger as an enduring friend.  Anger causes us to lash out, to stop listening to anyone who opposes us, and to ultimately drive a wedge which should have never been created.

This, though, is not the only way.  It is the easiest and most convenient.  It will show up with no effort and is fueled by the fire of others (there are always other angry people to get something stirred).  It happens almost instantaneously and just grows like the forest fires in the dry heat of summer.  But there still is another way.  I’ll admit my first response is to cut it all off – it seems to work better for me.  I can cut off the news, I can turn the other way, I can stop looking at social media – all in an effort to cut it out.  That works for a while, but, if I’m honest, angry people show up in all areas of life (and feel the need to vent about all their anger).  

The other way can seem soft and cheesy.  But it reality, it is the only real way.  It is love.  If we stop to consider what whole groups we may be slandering to make a point, we may pause.  If we think of those we point our fingers and yell at for their supposed stupidity or imagined immorality, we may not be so quick to point.  If we pause to get to know someone who we have demonized or considered “the other”, we may find they are more human than we initially thought.  If we choose the way of listening rather than lashing out in fear, we may find real people have real lives and real love which may look different than ours.  It may just be we could live together, even if we don’t agree (what a concept).  

I know this can sound ideal and a bit of a utopia.  But if we don’t work towards something, anger becomes our chosen output and no progress is actually made.  We simply become a bunch of angry, hateful folks who don’t even know what we are really angry about anymore.  And I just don’t want to live in a world like that.  So, today, I’ll choose love.  Maybe you will too.  That’s how change begins.