Skip to main content

Wrestling Swine

wild boar on swallow waters

I recently attended a function to support local law enforcement, seeking to encourage them during a time when their job is especially difficult. We had a great group of friends and family together as we cheered on the men and women who sacrifice a lot to protect our town.

There was another group that formed just down the street in protest to what we were doing. It was clear, as one of my kids pointed out, that “they just want to be mad.” Unfortunately, members of this other gathering were able to engage a few people from our group and instigate an argument that went exactly nowhere. The problem with some people is that they aren’t interested in the truth or being enlightened, they just want to argue. Fighting is more important than facts.

And that tendency is as prevalent today as any time I can remember since I have been alive. Whether it’s mask wearing, political affiliations, race, religion, or myriad other unfortunate dividers, so many on either side of those disputes seem far more concerned with picking a fight than they do with increasing their knowledge or uncovering the truth.

When faced with a possible confrontation involving someone who just wants to argue, don’t engage. Don’t take the bait. Regardless of the evidence or virtue supporting your beliefs, your opposition simply is not interested in discovering facts. They only want the fight.

Resist the urge to try to be “right.” Otherwise, you just end up being dragged into the mud and mire with them. It’s a lose-lose proposition. Remember, don’t try to wrestle a pig. You’ll both get muddy, but the pig likes it.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Toxic Humility

We have all seen false humility: the guy who tries to hide his arrogance with feigned modesty. It’s usually pretty obvious and always obnoxious. But there is also another variation of false humility out there: toxic humility. This is often displayed in self-deprecating talk and a lack of self-confidence, belittling or undermining one’s own talents and abilities. The danger in this kind of behavior is twofold: it is too often accepted as true humility and like a virus, it spreads doubt and disbelief. To clarify, it is not that the bearer of this toxic humility isn’t honest about his view of himself. That is the very issue: he absolutely believes he has little value or utility. He thinks downplaying his own worth is humility but I disagree. CS Lewis said it best when he wrote, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking about yourself less.” His point being, true humility is not an ever-present raincloud of self-doubt that follows you around. It’s a focus on
Post a Comment
Read more

Primed for Progress

Just as some pumps need to be primed to work effectively, our lives need to be “primed” to flow efficiently. Good mornings and productive days don’t happen by accident, and by “priming” your day, you can set yourself up for better results. Does it mean you won’t have bad days? Of course not, but it’s making your day happen instead of just waiting for what happens. Once again, it’s a choice of being proactive rather than reactive. You will still have challenges and difficulties, but how you face those hurdles and respond to the struggles will be different with a primed mindset. I am sure there are many ways to prime your day and set the tone for the hours ahead, and what works for one won’t necessarily work for all. However, the process of creating a plan or a model of how things should unfold is a great place for anyone to start. Also, as I have mentioned before, how you actually start the morning is critical - the battle with the alarm clock is your first chance at victory for
Post a Comment
Read more

Flower Among Thorns

About six or seven years ago, my wife was around three months pregnant as we eagerly anticipated the birth of another child. One night, as I lay sleeping, I had a dream that our baby was born. It was a beautiful little girl with thin, wispy hair and large, bright eyes punctuating her beautiful face. I held her proudly in my arms and stared down at this precious little creation. I carefully handed her off to her older brother, who was just a toddler himself, as he sat on the coach, arms outstretched, anxiously awaiting the chance to hold his baby sister. I helped him prop up a pillow underneath his little arms to help support my daughter and then stepped back to take in the amazing sight as he gazed down at her with both pride and amazement in his eyes. As I stood there watching them, the dream quickly faded. When I woke up, my eyes met the tearful glance of my wife. “I’m bleeding,” she said as she fought back the emotions, “I think I am miscarrying.” Those words sunk deeply i
1 comment
Read more