Anger is a slippery slope that we often fall into. It normally results from seeing some party or parties do something that we do not particularly agree with.
I am no exception. I’ve gotten exceptionally angry at a number of people for a wide variety of things. I have cussed people out. I’ve lost my morality due to it. In fact, when doing business, anger is the norm. Not everything will go your way, even though you try as hard as you want it to.
Recent events though have caused me to look at anger in a different perspective. Specifically, the two-sidedness of it. In all likelihood, the party you are getting angry at is angry at you as well. They, like you, have their own reasons for feeling it.
In many ways now, I suppose I see anger as a much more petty emotion now. I try my best to look at it from both sides of the fence.
When people get angry at one another, it is because they are heated, and perhaps are not thinking straight. But like all things in life, anger subsides - at least mine usually does. And when it does disappear, I see the error or misguided things that led me to that emotion. I think the opposite party often feels that way as well.
That is not to say we can always control our anger, but perhaps that we should have a more nuanced and understanding view of both parties. Anger, like many emotions such as self-pity or apathy, often gets us nowhere other than our own self-satisfaction.
And at the end of the day, are we getting angry because we want to fulfill our own petty needs as humans, or are we getting angry because we want to incite the change that we were getting angry about in the first place? There are better ways to do so than getting angry.
Think about both sides of the coin before you flip out in rage at someone or something. It’s usually not worth it.
Selah,
Lorenzo