I’ve read the blog don of all trades before; last fall the author, a police officer, wrote a post about Ferguson that went viral. Sadly, his second viral post has to do with yet another St. Louis area tragedy, the shooting death of 6-year-old Marcus Johnson during a traffic dispute. It was difficult for me to understand what could possible lead to such senseless violence, until I came to this excerpt from the blog: “. . . anger is easy. Patience is hard. Kindness in the face of adversity is hard. Understanding is hard.” That goes a long way toward explaining what is still happening in Ferguson, in the St. Louis region and beyond.
I too am convicted by these words. Anger is easy. Understanding is hard. I generally refrain from posting about divisive topics such as religion, politics and current events, but I confess to having opinions and prejudices. For instance, if I had a son, he’d look like Darren Wilson. (Oops, that was snarky – see how easy it is to fall into?) In point of fact, I do have a son – a tall, lanky, fresh-faced, smart, funny, considerate 17-year-old with an interest in law enforcement that fills his mother’s heart with simultaneous pride and dread.
God forbid, eleven years from now he may face a life-or-death situation with a no-win outcome. Thank God, eleven years ago my six-year old cutie never came to any harm when I took him to play in the park on a beautiful spring day. Please God, keep him and his friends safe as they navigate their teen years in a challenging and hostile society.
And as long as I am in prayer, may God please give me the strength to choose patience, kindness in the face of adversity, and understanding instead of anger.
