Thursday, August 28, 2008

Believe in Good or the Power of Evil?


Have you ever seen the movie "Diary of a Mad Black Woman?" There's a scene in the movie where this woman is taking care of her ex-husband, a man who has been nothing short of cruel to her the entire time and in this one scene he falls into the tub, he's cold and shivering and asking her to help him get out to which she does nothing. She just sits there with him and makes him wait.

At that moment, the tables have turned and she has the power to return every ounce of crap this guy pushed on her over time. All the anger she felt can be exacted in that moment in the movie - even though it is typically out of character for the woman being played in the movie.

That is today.

One minute life is speeding along and the next you realize you have the power to affect something on a much larger scale than you ever imagined. With a single action, you - an individual, could put into motion a series of events that could have long lasting repercussions and yet, none of this is in your nature...or is it?

What is our nature?

Do these moments of human kindness define us as people or is the constant barrage of murder, pain and chaos a testament to our true nature? Personally, I like to believe we are good and the exception to the rule is evil. I am typically not a vindictive or hurtful person, however I have been known to lash out if provoked far enough.

Realizing today, that I hold that capability - the ability to affect someone else in a major way, especially if I think you've done me wrong - is intoxicating and tempting, but my belief in Karma/a higher being/god(whatever you want to call it) is stronger...and right now it's the only thing that separates me from those without a conscious.

Have you ever been faced with a choice and you could do what was in your nature or you could do what was totally out of character? Which did you choose?

4 comments:

Aleta said...

I know that there is a very ugly side to my character. It's deep within me and only comes out to protect someone I love or to protect myself. But it's there and I know it's there. Greg has never seen it and I don't think he would ever provoke it. Now, if I had to protect him, that side of me would come out.


It's happened once before, so I know I can call upon it, that angry spirit - helps to keep me fighting for what I believe, but it's more of my nature to not fight.

I believe we all have the good and bad, which is why I look for the good in people. We have a choice most of the time and if we have the faith, we'll opt for the good. Not always easy, but worth it to our spirit.

Putting the FUN in DysFUNctional said...

I definitely have been in that position. I'll just say that I could've told my ex-husband's current wife (who he cheated on me with, when we were still married) something that would've ruined them. But I didn't do it.

Anonymous said...

I have never seen that movie but have you ever read Their Eyes Were Watching God? There's a part that I'm reminded of reading about that scene. It all boils down to being able to find your voice after being oppressed.

For me,I think it depends how horrible and life-impacting the other person's actions have been. I believe in karmic hand-outs and think ultimately that's how one should be dealt their comeuppance but you know....you have to wonder at some point,"Ah, maybe I'm their karmic destiny!" LOL. It's tempting,anyway.

Anonymous said...

I think we've all been faced with situations where we acted out of character. I feel that way whenever I take a class I'm nervous about, or when I take the initiative to approach a guy. It's good to put ourselves out of our comfort zones.