Hosting Violence

Here I am, there you are. The world didn’t get hit by a giant asteroid or break apart in a thousand earthquakes or get bombed out of existence by aliens. No, December 2012 came and went without so much as a hint of Armageddon. The end didn't happen.

But, something did happen in December 2012. And it was awful. Death and pain and sadness, and the end of the world for some. 20 children, innocent children were killed. I can’t understand it, what that young man did, why he would take the lives of some of our most vulnerable.

I wasn't working that day because I had a bad back, and all I could really do was sit on the couch and watch television. Once I started watching the news, I couldn't turn away. Every part of me wanted to, because it was so sad and heartbreaking. But I couldn't  and by the end of the day, I felt so low. And I cried. I cried for those children. I cried for the six adults who also died. I cried for the families, the friends, the town, this country, the human race. My heart felt as though it had been shattered into a million pieces.

I also cried for the young man who committed the murders. I cried because something inside him was so wrong. I am not God and I don’t sit in judgment of anyone. And I know that mental illness is an overwhelming problem, one that doesn't receive the attention it needs. I know many people suffer with psychological disturbances or tremendous emotional pain and they don’t receive the help they need.

I also know that there are people who are simply evil, who hurt others for their own sick and twisted pleasure.

It pains me to read the paper or watch the news, knowing that all too often, it's full of evidence of man's inhumanity to man.

This wasn't the only shooting. There was the movie theater in Colorado, the Oregon mall shooting, and too many others. Each time, I feel as though a dark shadow hovers over my soul. And I question why these things happen.

I don’t think the Mayans saw December 2012 as the end of the world, but rather as the end of a cycle. Perhaps it was not to be one cataclysmic event, but a series of events that lead to great change. Could there be change around the corner for this violent world?

I just finished reading, listening to the book, The Host by Stephanie Meyer, of Twilight fame. In the story, human beings have their bodies taken by aliens. There is no knock-down, drag-out war, no bombings of major cities, no giant machines snapping up humans . No, the aliens quietly take over the world, neatly slipping into the bodies of their hosts. I don’t want to give away the book. No, what I wanted to tell you was how the main character, an alien in a human body, wonders about the violent, aggressive nature of humans. And because I was already contemplating that myself, this kind of spoke to me. (I often find that reading books opens my eyes and mind to the interconnectedness of things)

Why is the human race so violent? Why do we hurt each other, hurt other beings? Perhaps we are not as evolved as we like to think. Perhaps we are mostly animal. And as I said before, I am not one to judge. I myself enjoy watching football. I have taken martial arts classes. I like to punch and kick. So, as a human, I’m not above violence myself. Is it the release of that aggressive, animal energy we have inside? Is it that biologically we were not meant to be passive creatures? Is it that we were made to hunt, to run and climb and swim, to do the things mammals of this planet do and now that we don’t need to do those things, that unused energy gets stored up inside us and needs to be let out? That would explain the human love affair with violent sports, movies, and video games.

In the book, the alien race is non-violent, very passive, and guided by love and kindness. Some believed the humans did not deserve their lives or their planet because of their ugly, violent, selfish ways. If I were an alien watching the news that day those children were killed, I might think the same thing.

But I am human. And I know that we are all imperfect. Perhaps all of us are capable of violence. But while I understand there are bad souls out there, I also believe that most of us are capable of great things. We have the ability to love deeply, to feel compassion, to help others. I will not accept that this beautiful world full of so many beautiful people, is one deserving of a takeover by some far away alien race. I know that we each have the power to chase away the darkness that threatens our innocent blue skies.

I believe that we can create change, good change, great change.  I believe in the power of love, understanding, empathy, and compassion. 

I also believe the Mayans were right about the end of the cycle. Will it be the start of a better one? Or will we continue down our dark path until we lose everything, whether to our own violent ways, or to aliens?