Comments on: Angry all the time

By: Kassandra Quick-Vana

Kassandra Quick-Vana — Fri, 21 Mar 2025 03:20:01 +0000

Shawn, these words: I allow anger to be my only response and it is so incomplete-but it is the safest, most distant, and the lowest level of commitment. These words are so convicting for me but oh so necessary for me to hear. I tend to justify my anger as “righteous” (ie: what they are doing in Gaza and the West Bank is barbaric, ie: cutting off medical aid to those whose very lives are dependent on it, is inhumane). And while there may be righteousness in my anger, nevertheless it is a cheap righteousness if it does not lead me into loving and just action. Thank you for facilitating this insight for me!

By: Nate McIntyre

Nate McIntyre — Fri, 21 Mar 2025 02:44:55 +0000

Shawn, a line that stood out to me in your post, is, “I allow anger to let me off the hook from a response that is intentional.” That’s a really honest appraisal and I appreciate it and it is a good challenge for me.

Your post is also a reminder that things are so much different when they are up close and personal (rather than seen from far away and often just in the news) and even though I’m sorry for the difficulty you’re personally experiencing, I’m grateful for hearing your first-person account.

By: Kelly Fassett

Kelly Fassett — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 21:57:58 +0000

Shawn, I appreciate your honesty and vulnerability with this. I have heard that beneath anger is a treasure that is dear to you. I wonder how you might name this ‘treasure’ – the people you know and also what is at stake.

I appreciate how you are challenging yourself to press into action while still doing the hard work of upholding the belovedness of all involved…

By: Colin Pip Dixon

Colin Pip Dixon — Tue, 18 Mar 2025 20:11:32 +0000

Shawn, I really appreciate the way you have described your experience and the way you questioned your habitual anger reaction. I’ve been experiencing something similar this week, seeing how easily I fall into reactive patterns that block “the waters of my own belovedness”, as you put it.

And I am also deeply saddened to hear about the ways the recklessness of the USAID cuts have hit the people and institutions that you know personally. Thank you for sharing this and witnessing to it. The truth matters and what is really happening is often getting distorted now and it has so much power hearing it directly from the people who are being affected. Sending prayers for the hospital in Kenya and the school in Ramallah.