Seems anger has been in the news a bit lately. Governor Haley (S. Carolina) asserts that we should not follow angry voices. Trump accepts the anger “mantle” she apparently donned upon him and admits he is “very, very angry”. And so the drama plays.
Let’s talk. When we are angry we make mistakes. We act in ways that harm ourselves and others. We don’t listen; we can’t. We judge too quickly and often inaccurately. I’ve heard it called “premature evaluation” and if the shoe fits…
Anger has gotten to be pretty popular in America. We like our heroes (of any variety) better when they are angry. Chest thumping is alive and well. Anger is our current trend.
And putting politics aside, I have a hunch that while feeling anger is inescapable, living in anger is incompatible with life. We hate the way it feels.
Now I am not talking manners. I am not encouraging blind acceptance. I am simply saying that if we feel anger it is a “tell”. Somewhere we have allowed a compromise that is incompatible with who we are and that compromise is harming us and must surely be rectified. Otherwise we become “very, very angry”. And say very, very stupid things.
I’d also like to point out – through decades of personal experience – that anger does not bring clarity. Clarity is an entity unto itself always available and missed when anger is taking the microphone.
So it would follow that anger may not be our friend. It might be wise to uproot it at its core by rectifying the source of the anger – before we act. In saying this I agree with Governor Haley. We should not follow angry voices, but the angry voices we need to rise above are our own. If we do this we will not fear nor follow the angry voice of another.
photo compliments of NOHO
let kindness win 