When we get passed on the freeway by an ignorant driver and that four letter word goes across your brain and in some cases comes out of your mouth, do you ever catch yourself and think about why you are getting upset? Anger, as a noun, is defined by a strong feeling of displeasure and belligerence aroused by a wrong. Anger can be bred from frustration from any given stimuli. Most times it is from a person but it can be with a computer, a vending machine, and even a door. But in those cases is it profitable to lose control of yourself when there is nothing that you can do to change the situation? Because a mosquito bites you on the arm do you then take a bug spray gun and go to work on the entire yard? I hope not! Anger is a viable emotion which goes right along with love and sadness. Anger can spur us to protect our loved ones and to resist the oppressiveness of society. Anger is very fruitful when it leads to profitable results, but is it fruitful to allow ourselves to be taken and even overcome with our anger when in many cases it will do nothing to change the scenario or the situation that has already happened. Society has already given us black men the very ignorant title of being an “angry black man.” So why do even more to perpetuate that stereotype. I propose that we should be more like water. Water is calm and able to transform given the correct environment. When it calls to be angry by all means use that anger to be positive.
Things happen which are beyond our control all the time. But because we cannot control nature or even the actions of others, we get upset, angry, and even wrathful. The associated word just depends on how long the seed of displeasure has been germinating in our hearts or even if it has grown fruit. Although we cannot control what happens to us we can manage our reactions. Contrary to popular belief everyone is not fascinated by how upset you are. The world does not need to know every word you feel you need to express about how someone didn’t say hi to you when you smiled and waved at him or her. Grow up and learn to control your emotions.
The first murder according to the Bible happened because Cain harbored hatred in his heart for his brother Abel. Anger must be measured out and even stopped in many cases before the fruit comes out from it. Our situations and circumstances test out who we really are on the outside. So let us look into our own hearts and see what we actually do when we get upset and how it affects the people around us. If when you get upset and you end up hitting someone or yelling out an endless stream of obscenities, you should expect your relationships and friendships to not last very long.
Aaron J