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August 4, 2020

What’s your Trigger?

Have you noticed that during this ‘down time’ that you are more easily triggered? I certainly have.

I think that what we are witnessing on the news and in our society is evidence of this.

Take for instance all these race riots, is racism something new to us? No, unfortunately it has been around as long as man has walked the earth. Does it need to go the way of the dinosaur? Of course, it should have no place in our modern society, but it is not going to disappear in a few months, or even in a few years, it is going to take generations of hard work and open dialogue. I am certainly not saying that we should do nothing, we should definitely speak out and shine light on inequality, to have peaceful discussions. But riots, destruction, and violence only reinforces many peoples views on racism.

Have you felt that you are now being triggered by the constant talk of Covid-19?

You cannot turn on the tv, radio, or computer without hearing the latest statistics. Every person on Facebook and Twitter has an opinion on the virus, it’s real, it’s not real, it’s incredibly dangerous, it’s fake news, on and on the diatribe goes. Should we be required to wear masks, not wear them, open the gyms, close everything, send kids to school, keep them home?

There doesn’t seem to be discussions any longer, now it’s heated debates or arguments.

Then we have to throw in a Presidential election year (whoever planned 2020 has a demented sense of humor)! I’m already sick of the television ads, especially if you take just a little time to actually fact check the talking points, and always find out that it is a sentence or paragraph that was completely taken out of context (and I’m referring to both sides). And it’s not just the ads, but the hate and vitriol being spread on social media. If you don’t share my opinion or support my candidate, then you are either stupid or unworthy.

I just don’t get it, do I not care enough? I could give a flying fuck who you vote for, I don’t care if you support wearing masks or think its all a scam, I value and respect your opinions but they’re just that, YOUR opinions, they don’t influence me, I can actually think for myself and have my own opinions.

What I do value is your character, if I saw you on the street throwing insults or objects at a police officer, I will no longer respect you nor care to be in your company. If I overheard you exchanging racial comments to someone, you no longer need to be in my circle of acquaintances. And if you verbally attack someone because of who they support politically, then you are not worth my time.

These are MY opinions, you don’t have to like them or even respect them. It’s up to you, you make the choice. If my comments trigger you, enrage you, then don’t read my blogs and posts. If you’re mad at me and don’t feel you can get past it, fine, I’m sure you have plenty of other friends and acquaintances that will share your same opinion.

This is a difficult time for everyone, lets be a little gentler on ourselves and others. Take a moment next time you feel triggered and do a little self-analysis. Why is this triggering me so much, how can I process this in a more productive manner. Is there something that I can actually do about it?

Thanks for reading and hopefully we can peacefully stay in contact.

Namaste~ Donna

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Donna Schnoor  |  Contribution: 250