Someone vandalized our brand new library this week. That is a shame. However, what raises questions is the reaction to this behaviour.
If a person is behaving in a way that is inappropriate, or destructive as in this case, clearly something is lacking in their learning. They think it is okay to attack and to project anger onto others and the world. But when we respond with hate, anger, a desire for revenge and punishment, we are no different; we are teaching the same lesson.
This cycle of attack and punishment founded on hate and fear has gone on far too long. How many more thousands of years must we continue to look through this dark lens? Have we not learned that such a vision doesn’t work? Haven’t we at least begun to wonder if we might not be capable of more than this?
Some will say that it’s no big deal, no one was hurt; and yes, that is a good thing. But, big or small, it is nonetheless an opportunity to recognize and teach that hate, attack, fear and vengeance simply don’t work.
We could acknowledge the call for love that is behind this act, look beyond it to the hurt, the absence of self-worth, the lack of self-love that is its source. We could then teach, by our response, that there is another way of being, one that comes from the heart, one that is far more rewarding. Why not learn from this minor incident, take a baby step and move away from the old ways to a new, better way of being—one that comes from the heart.
