The World Needs Your Love, Not Your Hate
The truth is, I've been sitting on this post for a while. I've jotted down pages and pages of thoughts, but they all felt more like unorganized rants than anything cohesive and ultimately productive. Well, I'm tired of trying to get it right. It's time to share it. It's time to get it out, organized or not. I think, I hope, my message will resonate.
When attempting to solve a problem, we can choose to look at the leaves, the branches, the trunk, or the root.
Most people focus on the leaves - and even worse, not even their own leaves, but those of others - by blaming, complaining, and creating enemies. It's a never-ending game of "I'm right and they're wrong! We're good and they're evil."
However, in order to solve any systemic problem, we need to address our own, individual root. That's the only true path to the positive change we all seek.
There's no such thing as righteous anger
For those seeking positive change, whether it be within yourself, within the community, or within the world, anger is always dead end.
You might think anger propels you to do good, but really, it propels you to spread hate, and to act out of your own selfish need to feel better. Actions that stem from your individual need to feel better are rarely, if ever, the right actions needed to solve a larger problem.
Take the example of a political activist who can't handle the actions of the opposing party.
(When you can't handle something, it means an event outside is so disturbing to you, that you can't even witness it without getting upset.)
When the activist goes to take action, those very actions stem from not being able to handle the situation. Because they can't handle or accept the current reality, their subsequent actions are just re-actions driven by their own fear and anger. This is destructive. (If you need proof, look at any issue we face as a society today).
If you're angry at people mistreating the environment, all you have now is more anger with which to pollute the environment. It's understandable to feel anger, but don't let that anger drive your attempt to solve the problem. Further down, I propose a strategy on how to deal with your own anger and take affective action.
Understand the predicament we're in
When you begin to understand the workings of the mind, you realize the futility and danger of any conviction you might hold about other people.