Lately, I've had some drama to deal with and those that know me know I avoid drama. Drama generally shows up in what the smart folk call ad-hominem, or personal attacks. This can be painful, embarrassing, and cause serious damage to one's peace of mind, regardless of how much truth or accuracy is in the attacks.
I know who I am inside. And I know that when the sea of drama rises, I have to swim through it to get to peaceful waters. But I'm getting better and better at it, swimming faster, and eventually will see it from far enough away to avoid it altogether. Life would be so much easier, wouldn't it, if you didn't care about people? I care about people. When I see them attacked, or I'm attacked, it's immediate pain and a feeling of depression. I can't be the judge and jury; only they know the truths about their personal lives. But I can feel for them, no matter what they did that didn't match up with somebody else's view of good behavior.
My friend Shane taught me two things; first, he told me I have a problem with forgiveness. I had no idea. And he was dead-on. And I STILL have that problem; he told me this six years ago so I could begin working on it. He's a peaceful, mature, good person, down at the soul level. He's the kind of guy I always strive to be like. He also told me that he believes in karma; I still don't. I've seen too many aholes get through life with reasonable ease and unless they are getting their justice from some higher authority after life, I don't see karma at work. I HOPE karma is real and justice finds its way into everybody's life. And I hope justice has at least a touch of forgiveness in it.
But if I'm going to do what I say, and continue to close down or at least control this part of myself that gets affected by drama, there is only one real way to start out. That is to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry to anyone who I have ever hurt, or embarrassed, or caused any discomfort. If karma is real, I can assure you that I've already been paid back ten-fold for those I have hurt if we're measuring in physical and psychological pain. If karma is real, I'm thinking maybe it forgot to stop punishing me once justice was served. So by saying and feeling that I'm sorry for those that I've hurt, I can begin to (hopefully quickly) forgive myself for those actions. And maybe if I can forgive myself, I can forgive others. But if I'm going anti-drama, or with the create-a-better-world-for-people philosophy, there is no place to start except to say that I'm sorry for any drama I've caused anybody, ever, or anything I did that made your world anything but a better world.
With that out of the way, which just made me literally breathe in some fresh air and feel weight come off of me, I can get on to the business of making sure that I don't go near rising seas of drama, and regardless of how much pain I'm in, nobody deserves to be snapped at because I'm hurting, even if they do something out of line. My goal is peace of mind and helping people when I can. I want those two things more than anything, and they have become the goals that I will now live for and repeat to myself every day. You've heard all of the cliches; life is too short, golden rule, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all, if you're not giving, you're not living... well, I have nothing to add to that except that I do know from experience that good feelings and peace of mind come from just such behaviors.
I know who I am inside. And I know that when the sea of drama rises, I have to swim through it to get to peaceful waters. But I'm getting better and better at it, swimming faster, and eventually will see it from far enough away to avoid it altogether. Life would be so much easier, wouldn't it, if you didn't care about people? I care about people. When I see them attacked, or I'm attacked, it's immediate pain and a feeling of depression. I can't be the judge and jury; only they know the truths about their personal lives. But I can feel for them, no matter what they did that didn't match up with somebody else's view of good behavior.
My friend Shane taught me two things; first, he told me I have a problem with forgiveness. I had no idea. And he was dead-on. And I STILL have that problem; he told me this six years ago so I could begin working on it. He's a peaceful, mature, good person, down at the soul level. He's the kind of guy I always strive to be like. He also told me that he believes in karma; I still don't. I've seen too many aholes get through life with reasonable ease and unless they are getting their justice from some higher authority after life, I don't see karma at work. I HOPE karma is real and justice finds its way into everybody's life. And I hope justice has at least a touch of forgiveness in it.
But if I'm going to do what I say, and continue to close down or at least control this part of myself that gets affected by drama, there is only one real way to start out. That is to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry to anyone who I have ever hurt, or embarrassed, or caused any discomfort. If karma is real, I can assure you that I've already been paid back ten-fold for those I have hurt if we're measuring in physical and psychological pain. If karma is real, I'm thinking maybe it forgot to stop punishing me once justice was served. So by saying and feeling that I'm sorry for those that I've hurt, I can begin to (hopefully quickly) forgive myself for those actions. And maybe if I can forgive myself, I can forgive others. But if I'm going anti-drama, or with the create-a-better-world-for-people philosophy, there is no place to start except to say that I'm sorry for any drama I've caused anybody, ever, or anything I did that made your world anything but a better world.
With that out of the way, which just made me literally breathe in some fresh air and feel weight come off of me, I can get on to the business of making sure that I don't go near rising seas of drama, and regardless of how much pain I'm in, nobody deserves to be snapped at because I'm hurting, even if they do something out of line. My goal is peace of mind and helping people when I can. I want those two things more than anything, and they have become the goals that I will now live for and repeat to myself every day. You've heard all of the cliches; life is too short, golden rule, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all, if you're not giving, you're not living... well, I have nothing to add to that except that I do know from experience that good feelings and peace of mind come from just such behaviors.
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