The Law of Waiting it Out

When I open my eyes, my soul feels all black-and-blue from the previous night’s battering. It takes me a few moments to get my bearing and as I roll out of bed and hit the floor to make my coffee, I remember the letters and the red-hot dragon’s fiery fury.  I want to resume where I left off, I want to feel angry, but to my great surprise, I find I used it all up. 

I am still frustrated. 

I am still confused about the inexplicable decisions and what seems to me as dismal incompetence of the administration. 

I still want all my questions answered.

I still want to give them a solid piece of my mind.

But, all the previous night's fury…all the turmoil... ? 

I turn to the left.  

I turn to the right… but the red-hot dragon is… gone!

Where did he go???? I ask myself, for this is definitely not the usual me. 

For, you see, I grew up in the world where holding grudges - and I am not talking just days and weeks... I am talking centuries old grudges - is a national sport… and cultivating anger is favorite past time. 

I never even knew there could be an alternative. 

I didn't even realize that it could be possible to not act on your anger. 

That it is possible to wait out the emotional thunderstorm the same way one waits out a central-Florida afternoon thunderstorm stuck behind a full cart in Wal-Mart Supercenter until the thunder and the lightening and pounding rain passes and the rivers recede into the drainage ponds. 

And the blue sky reappears behind the dark clouds.