When something goes wrong, have you noticed how quickly we want someone to blame? Surely this catastrophe, whatever it happens to be, must be someone’s fault. My hurt, my anger, my grief, my disgust…is searching for a place to land. He, she, they are the ones who did this. They weren’t careful. He broke the rules. She should have known better. We want someone, anyone, to pay the price.
You know what? Sometimes things just happen. Circumstances and people align in certain ways that result in horrible outcomes. Because, you know what? People are people. We are not perfect. Even when we do our best, things go wrong. Even when we don’t deserve it, hard stuff happens. Even when we are minding our own business, we end up being in the wrong place at the wrong time. So, what now?
All of this calls me to be more kind. It calls me to take more deep breaths and to walk more gently in the world. It calls me to acknowledge my own mistakes…and to realize we all make them. Every-single-one-of-us. Rather than be disappointed about this simple fact, maybe we can let it make us humble. Just maybe we can learn to be loving even in the most trying times.
Why not give it a try?
Paula
