2018 promises to be another year that challenges our collective patience and our efforts at civil discourse. It will therefore be doubly important this coming year to remember that hatred, anger, and greed are expressions of fear. The only antidote to fear is love.
Yes, I know we need transformation, but…
Like so many others, I believe we need major transformations of our political and economic systems. But I know that we are not going to get there by yelling at each other across the political divide.
It’s how we react to news, not the news itself…
I can’t do much about the train wreck of bad news that passes before my eyes every day, but I can change how I react to this news. My resolution is that I am going to look for solutions in everything I read, instead of piling on the outrage bandwagon. The saying that ‘if you’re not a part of the solution, you’re a part of the problem‘ rings true.
I’m going to try a little harder in the coming year to understand where everyone else is coming from. To realize that greed is to deny others, that anger blocks dialogue, and that fear paralyzes, is to understand that love is the only way out of this cultural and political impasse. We need each other to successfully resist the impersonal forces at work in our society and world.
So my New Year Resolution is to try and be less reactionary and more thoughtful and constructive in my response to events.
