I’m having one of those days where shit on the news makes me worry for humanity even more than usual, and then I remind myself that, in the end, there are far more good people in the world than bad. Many are quiet and act silently and work magic even without knowing that the good they leave behind will grow into something larger. Those things don’t make the news but we feel them every day…when someone smiles, or cares, or shows us a kindness we think we don’t deserve, or gracefully turns people who are bent toward hate and destruction in a direction a little closer to love. It’s slow work. But it’s good work. Important work.
I’m friends with such a broad array of people and some make me frustrated and sad, some refill my cup each day by reminding me how much more we can be, some are unwitting examples of who I want to become and others are unwitting examples of who I am so grateful that I’m not, and some give me laughter and hope and inspirational sloth videos remind me that there is joy and silliness in the world that makes it worth living in. We’re all at different stages and that’s okay. You’re okay. You may be hateful or angry or bitter or sad or confused or tired or abusive but the wonderful thing is that you will change. You will. Even if you don’t want to. Life makes you change. The bad thing is that you may change into someone worse. The good thing is that you have the power to choose where you want to go from here.
Today.
Right this moment.
Just a tiny bit.
Ask yourself, what can I do right now to be kinder…to myself, to others. And then try. You won’t always succeed. I won’t either and I’ll probably fail more often than I succeed, but the conscious effort to turn anger and indignation into compassion can make such a difference. It’s a habit I’m willing to try to make for myself.
PS. That doesn’t mean I’m not still dangerously unpredictable so if you’re intentionally an asshole I still might accidentally stab you in the leg a few times before I calm down and remember that it’s always better to stab people with kindness. Mostly because kindness is more likely to actually change assholes, and also because Victor found my hidden drawer full of emergency bail money and used it to pay the electric bill. I can’t go back to jail, y’all. So don’t be an asshole and then I won’t be an asshole and then other people won’t be assholes and then no one gets stabbed and I can use my bail money stash for things like donuts and ending world hunger.
Depends on how much I can save up, I guess.
PPS. From the Costa Rica Sloth Sanctuary:
Be the sloth you want to see in the world.