angerey

Daily Meditation 952–10/11/2024

There’s an expression “Decisions made in anger cannot be undone.”

When you drop a nasty name at your spouse during an explosive argument.
When you make a snide, hurtful comment to your team at work.
When you floor it on the shoulder during a traffic jam.

Your spouse will never forget what you called them. They may forgive you, but that angry, horrible name will be seared into their heart.

The comment to your team may evaporate as the air clears, but they’ll always remember how you lost your cool.

You may pay off the ticket/be okay from an accident speeding along the shoulder of the interstate, but your family riding with you will never forget the fear in your rage.

The truth is that anger often drives us to make poor choices but they are nearly always long lasting in their results.

When angry, sometimes it’s best to just honestly tell the other people around you you need a few minutes. Go lay down. Go for a drive. Go for a walk (no headphones). Leave the situation, get away from others.
But most important, wherever you are when you feel it rising, do not rage or have a physical reaction. The idea of catharsis (lashing out physically — punching a pillow, hitting a wall, screaming in fury) does not work! It will only serve to add fuel to your feelings.

In closing — anger is a dangerous emotion which practically never results in anything good. While avoiding such an emotion is impossible, you can remove yourself from a situation when you feel it bubbling up. When you make a choice out of anger, odds are good it CANNOT be UNDONE!