Purposeful Growth

In the last posting, I wrote about peace and anger. I indicated that a person can still be peaceful while feeling anger if no harm is done to others. A few days later I saw an article in the June 13 Time magazine, 10 Questions for Danica Patrick. Danica is the Indy racecar driver who has caught the attention of racing fans and media. She is young, female, and attractive. And drives 200 mph race cars–everything celebrated in our culture today.

In response to the question, “How do you handle traffic jams? (in civilian driving),” Danica responded in part, ” I hate them. I hate slow drivers. I hate left-lane drivers… I have road rage every day. Every day.” (Emphasis is mine.)

Road rage every day. Thinking about that nearly makes me ill. Here is a popular young woman, very visible to the media and therefore to young people everywhere. Think of the role modeling going on here. Road rage every day. Hating slow drivers.

I’m sad for Danica, assuming she really does have road rage frequently because habitual anger is unhealthy. I’m also sad for what that says about our culture. Sure, it’s annoying when you’re in a hurry, but where is the compassion for others, the tolerance for elderly drivers, or those who might be confused and unfamiliar with local roads?

Recently, in the city I live in an incensed passenger in a car who felt another driver cut them off confronted the “offending” driver and stabbed him to death. A young father died because of road rage. While this may be an extreme example of road rage, it’s common to see drivers shouting, swearing, and offering obscene gestures to other drivers.

What do you model when confronted by slow, aggressive, or otherwise inconsiderate drivers, traffic jams, construction, and inadequate highways? I admit that at times I begin to feel angry at these behaviors. That’s when I must remember that the situation isn’t personal, it’s just a circumstance of inattention, poor judgment, or some other cause that isn’t really directed at me. Besides, no matter what my destination, arriving a few minutes later can’t really matter.

So the first feelings of anger are a sure sign to relax, deep breathe, and search for compassion. When I find that place within that is loving and understanding of others, I immediate feel relaxed and calm. This feels so much better than the tension of anger. This is living peace.

Jerry

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 30th, 2005 at 9:04 am and is filed under Peacefulness, Personal Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.