Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Thinkit: Wise Decisions of 2012


The single best decision I’ve actually followed up on was to ratchet down my tolerance for anger to zero.  This bears a little ‘splaination.

In the toing and froing of daily hecticity we encounter multiple opportunities to take umbrage.  There is no end to the occasions for outrage.  My epiphany was to stop and ask, “Who is my audience?  Who cares if I’m angry?” 

Of course it’s all just me in my metal think-tank, my personal sensory deprivation pod, also known as the single-occupant vehicle on the way to/from work.

Everyone is anonymous out there on the road.  We’re not sporting very much on the exterior that provides a reliable link to our life story.  Yet we can react as if it were all so very personal, our own maneuvers and the behavior we observe in others.

My goal was to spend less time (zero time) reacting in anger at other people’s anonymous activities.  I developed this mantra: No Anger, No Impatience, (take) No Offense.  This is what I say over and over while merging onto I-405. 

Has it helped?  Yes, absolutely. 

The mantra has helped me notice how often I flip from “doo doo de doo” to “grrrr, grrr, arrrrgh” with apparent impunity.  In private there seems to be no penalty for nurturing the anger djinn but it has a bad effect on me and so I assume on everyone else who keeps this little flame burning.  As with most fire anger seeks to consume fuel and will seek it indiscriminately.

My goal is to not be angry out in society or in private or at the very least notice when I begin to queue up the justifications.  The results are better sleep, better digestion, and an odd awareness of how pervasive the anger response is in our culture. 

I’m saying it ain’t worth it, it’s not normal, it hurts our tiny minds and short-circuits the attempts we make to stay connected with our friends and family.  No Anger, No Impatience, (take) No Offense.

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