How thrilled would you be to be a passenger on this flight where the mere leaning of a seat back caused such a ruccus that two Air Force F16 jets had to intervene and escort the airline back to the airport?
How have things gotten so volatile in human interactions? Why have we been reduced to treating one another with hostility and impatience? It's as if there is a rage boiling under the surface of humanity that is bound to blow at any second. . . so be careful not to lean your seat back (even though that is its intended purpose.)
We can only control ourselves, in any situation we have no control over what other people do or say. We can control our reaction to situations though. Our response can either escalate a situation or help to calm the situation down. We can be like step down transformers that take a high charge of electricity and power it down to a lower, safer level. Our responses can be thought-full, clear and calm even while we express our point of view so that it is heard. No one can hear us when we are shouting! No one will respond favorably when we attack! But if we can take a deep breath, say a little prayer to God for help, think things through for a moment asking ourselves how our response will either escalate the situation or transform it down to a reasonable level so that dialogue is possible, situations like this one may turn out differently.
I can imagine why the person who got hit in the head reacted. . . that's an act of violence against his person. It would have taken incredible self control for him not to lash back at his attacker. But the actions of these two people affected a whole host of others, all because one person reclined his seat on an airplane. Our actions do affect others; we can see that if we are willing to look around.
Things do not seem to be getting better regarding our anxious culture. . . what if we stopped to evaluate our own anxiety and spent time working on ourselves? Our responses may be just what is needed when situations get out of control. One calm, clear thinking person CAN and DOES make a difference to the entire situation. Calmness is just as contagious as anxiety.
Lord Christ, help us to be centered in you so that we can move and breathe and have our being in this world without hurting others. Instead help us to be calm, reflective and patient in the midst of emotionally charged situations. Give us your peace that frees us to live life to its fullest. Amen.
Image credit: stepdowntransformer.net
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