Anger and Bliss

I wrote a Facebook post yesterday, wrestling with how to address the distortion in the world while holding my center. My main question: How do I look at the injustices and damage in our world without devolving into blame-casting?

This is a skill that I am hoping to hone. To find the voice that cuts through the noise and inspires people to join together. I am inspired to co-create a world that is harmonious, balanced, aligned and full of integrity, and yet not to ignore our current realities.

The struggle for me is how to address what is out of balance in a way that is helpful. How to point to those injustices (racism, violence, poverty, Earth-damage, etc.) from a centered place, without blame. Because this point feels important.

A friend read the post and commented that there is a place for anger and that anger isn't considered centered. Reflecting on her comment, I realized that any striving for centeredness MUST include anger. Yes, you read that right.

Because anger is a feeling. We cannot be centered and in our integrity without ALL of our feelings. We cannot be whole without ALL of our feelings.

Anger becomes a problem only when we get stuck in it. Emotions need to move. Each one has its time and place. What gets me in trouble is when I sit in one for too long. And I always sit in it too long when I attach it to a person/place/situation, when I blame. It solidifies and keeps me stuck (and keeps me from seeing the larger perspective).

Interestingly, I can get stuck in bliss as well. I can lean too far into my ideal world and get lost in the flowing, ethereal realm, ignoring the earthly realities (I am a Pisces, of course. Dreamy fantasy worlds are pretty appealing to us Fish).

Too much bliss, I am bypassing my humanity. Too much anger, I am bypassing my "being-ness." We need all of our feelings. They each have a different and important role. My anger charges and energizes me. My sadness deepens me. My joy elevates me. My bliss expands me.

Somehow, through reflecting on this exchange with kind-hearted and fiercely loving friend, I found part of the answer to my quandary. I've always known that my voice needs to be aligned with Source. What I remembered was that my voice also needs to be grounded in all of my emotions, every shifting and constantly evolving one.

I get to be passionately protective (and angry) when I feel the injustice of the world without losing sight of the blissful possibility of transcending that injustice. And my angry/sad/joyful/blissed-out voice can be a bridge. And since we are all in this together, so can yours!