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That Little Something Called Resentment…
Put your hand up if you feel resentment towards someone you know, or more likely, once knew? As thought – resentment is no stranger to the human condition, but a familiar part.
Perceived or real, people we know, at one time or another will disappoint, offend and dumbfound. To err is to be human. Sometimes we inflict, and sometimes others inflict – sometimes accidental and sometimes intentional. It isn’t a question of if, but when. We prefer to focus on that bestowed on us, than on that inflicted by us.
Left unchecked, resentment takes on a life of its own. It simmers into a slow boil and cooks positive energy into negative. It zaps our vitality and serves up a feast of begrudge – a feast that never satisfies the appetite, only leaving us hungry for more.
Our minds run amok with thoughts of anger, disbelief and sometimes ill will. Unbeknownst, it turns us into victims and steals our precious time. We rewind the past, instead of playing the present and looking forward to the future. In other words, resentment kills the soul, and with it our joy.
Life is short, and yet why let resentment rule? Have our egos become so brittle that any transgression against us plays an endless loop in our minds? By no means must we forget all that transpires, however those that inflict win, when those who receive can’t let go.
We must realize that the world is neither all good nor all evil, but lies somewhere in between. Does evil exist? It does. Does goodness exist? It does. But more than not, the world is a shade of grey as opposed to an absolute black or white, and it’s critical our interactions with others take this into account. No one is perfect as the cliché goes, and those that act as they are; well those are probably the people to be most suspect of.
So the next time someone crosses our path in a way not conducive to creating a positive experience, let’s think twice before letting resentment get the better of us. Let’s remember that great expression of “walking a mile in the other‘s moccasins,” lest we make judgment too early.
A little empathy goes a long way in helping us understand the world and how it turns. In doing so, we’ll also be making our lives easier, not to mention avoiding the stress and anguish caused by that little something called resentment…
For more check out The C.A.T. Principle: Change, Action, Trust – Words to Live By, a 2014 Global Ebook Awards Nominee, available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
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