Picking at the callous

David Brooks’s opinion piece “How to Stay Sane in Brutalizing Times” that ran in the Times this past Sunday really drew me in. I try not to fall too deeply into the sordid undertow of the news cycle and the emotions they are designed to impart, but there are times when I fail, and I’ve been failing hard the past few weeks. So when I saw that title, I immediately gravitated toward it as a sort of media life saver. One line in particular resonated quite deeply:

We begin to assume that the so-called justice of our cause guarantees our success.

I make assumptions alongs those lines too frequently and it is unhelpful and unhealthy to do so. What followed in David’s piece was a balm from Greek and Hebrew tradition that I know I will return to often. It is indeed so easy to be buffeted into a defensive and angry position. But taking a moment to realize that the winds are battering us all equally is also an important and fundamental realization to help regroup one’s mindset into something more inclined toward a positive and fruitful outcome, born more of humility than selfishness or fear.