You know that thing?
That thing that you’re angry about?
That social post
that you’re about to flame comment
That person of a particular shade
who you suspect stole your job
That human exploring their gender
who you’ve never met
That woman making decisions
about what happens to her body
That billionaire building penile rockets
to eventually get him to Mars
That music that you chose to listen to
but didn’t really enjoy
That brand of guitar
that isn’t what it used to be
That list that goes on
And on
And on
That thing that makes your blood boil
That makes you seethe in a single moment
That makes you grind your teeth for want of screaming
I’m willing to make a bet that’s not why you’re angry
Not really
I’m willing to make a bet that you’re angry because you’re scared
(I might be wrong, but I’d make the bet)
Scared that you aren’t loved enough
Scared that you aren’t relevant
Scared that you are powerless to make change happen in your own life
Scared that you don’t know where the next penny is coming from
Scared because the debt never ends
Scared because someone else seems to not have to deal with all this
(so it must be you that has the problem)
Scared because you don’t know what’s coming
Scared because you assume it’ll be bad
Scared that the world has already passed you by
Scared of interacting with a real human being that you don’t know
Scared of the messiness
(the plain, sheer messiness)
of being human
And you don’t like being scared
(which of us do?)
so you’re angry
(which of us is not?)
I’ll let you in on a little truth
I was angry a lot of the time
(tell the truth, I still am at times)
But I’m learning
Learning to face what’s making me scared
Learning to take agency over what I can
And building strength to move forward
Anger is an energy
Wasted on symptoms
While we avoid the root causes
