I'm not normally an angry person. I'm glad, too, because it takes a lot of energy. I got angry this week over some personal issues, and I learned a few things.
First, anger affects the way I relate to everything and everyone. It doesn't just affect my relationship with person I'm angry with.
Being angry changes the way I see everything. Fun things are not as fun. Beauty is not as beautiful. I cannot think very clearly when I'm angry. I have to measure my words, and my thoughts seem to swirl in my head, defying me to express them. And that's how I feel talking to a complete stranger.
Being angry makes me tired. I get exhausted when I'm angry. I need a lot of sleep anyway, and anger makes it even worse.
It takes a long time for me to get angry, but when I get there, I tend to camp out. My anger is always so righteous; I like to enjoy being so right when someone else is so wrong. (symptom of unclear thinking) Eventually reality sets in, and I see that I have to move beyond my anger. Often I realize that I wasn't nearly as right as I thought.
I can't imagine living every day angry, like some people seem to do. I don't think I could get enough sleep.
It feels good to move beyond anger and return to joy. That's where I really want to camp out. The joy of the Lord is our strength, said Nehemiah. No wonder I was so tired.
