Recently this week, I had the misfortune of someone close to me lashing out and deleting me from facebook without first warning me they were going to do the deed. Caught off guard and a little bruised in the ego, I sent an inbox to this person to inquire as to why they were cutting me off from a long standing friendship. Well, believe me when I confess the results of their heated reply. Just shy of calling me the worst person alive, they blasted me with cruel obscenities, labelled me a "heartless, selfish c#*t, and explained that my negative energy was sucking the good out of them and they couldn't handle that "low vibration" and non-affirming actions of positive energy. This stunned me hardcore, as I proudly consider myself to be positive and always showing light everywhere I journey.
Hit hard in the stomach, my first reaction was to retaliate and toss curse words back with my Irish temper; being Taurus and Irish does not make combat pretty for this woman. The next thought that filled my mind was a quote my Pastor Earl told me six years ago: "you can't fight fire with fire."
He was certainly right; so in the recent years that have passed, I try to apply this advice to issues of
confrontation.
What struck me most about this accuser was that they were telling me how negative I was. This blew me out of the water. Negative and positive energy is part of our world, it is what makes the cosmos tick, so this person's unrealistic view that one must be positive 24/7 is just a failing theory. We all have our bad days. That one day when the bus goes by and sprays us with rain water, or we spill our coffee clumsily on our pant leg when we have an important work meeting to rush to; or perhaps it's the migraine that you just can't seem to kill with several coffee's, a gallon of water or Advil. You get the picture, right?
I think an electrician would even tell you that the universe needs both positive and negative aspects for it to work effectively.
Back to the original theme of this blog...my so called best friend who spoke to me daily was accusing me of being negative. Well, I consider it a privilege to share or vent on an issue of great concern, and likewise, this person would do it with me. They just refused to see that they also had issues in their life that were weighing me down as well, but as a devoted friend and loyal listener, I chose to suck it up and hear of their repeated cycle of toxic relationship with a partner that has been going on for two years.
I should point out that my written words on facebook in response to this accuser bore warm words of mercy, rather than retaliating with the anger I felt at that heated moment. Am I sure glad that I did! In the face of adversity, we are placed with a test; what we do with this test is our responsibility. My written words can be copied, pasted and sent all over cyber space to whomever this adversary wishes to smear my image with. In that case, check me off that blackmail list!
Mercy, the great word that Webster's dictionary calls "compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one's power; lenient or compassionate treatment," is definitely something we could all use from time to time in our human plight. How many times have we or someone else we know behaved badly during a heated argument and said things we wished desperately we could take back? I suppose we are all guilty of it at some point in time.
But there's people hurting that we encounter on our daily walk who need love and mercy more than others. If we do not help them along their journey, how will they ever learn to heal? A favourite quote of mine is "be kind to unkind people; they are the ones who need it most."
Another is a verse in the Bible that teaches compassion and mercy: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful also." ~Luke 3:36
While the damaging accusations of this person certainly crushed my ego, I took a step back to ponder what message they were trying to get across. With my self evolution of recent years, I pride myself on being a lightworker who spreads cheer, positivity and compassion to others. My extensive volunteering for food banks, Lupus Canada, the Optimist Club, Salvation Army and Durham Hospice seem to speak loudly of what level of compassion my heart flows forth. It is not simply my doing good deeds that make me awakened to the need of love and mercy on this planet; it is the boundless empathy and care that I extend to those who need me at 3 a.m when they have suicidal thoughts, their significant other abdandoned them, or its the person who just needs to meet for coffee to debrief on their hard, taxing week. These experiences have opened me up so wide that I am now considering a career in social work.
In closing, I want to stress the importance of being merciful, because it is vital to our collective conscience to show love and mercy to others, even when we feel they do not deserve it.
Try it out this week, in your daily travels, and note the little differences that crop up along the way.
While this friend of mine deleted me, they wished me well and myself in turn did the same. This person has a long history of battling with their mother, so it comes as no shock to me that they ae lashing out to myself, a close female who shares blood ties and a bond.
Nevertheless, my lesson of showing mercy to an unkind person has set me up for a blessing. This week ended on a high note, with the re- add of someone dear to my heart. Gratitude floods me right now, and I'm elated to share the win some, lose some motto.
Be well out there this week in your journey and try this mercy thing on for size. Love and peace, RR <3
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