We are living in a society that not only doesn’t understand the concept of “turning the other cheek” but also promotes just the opposite. How often do you hear someone say, “I’m going to sue… because (take your pick) my job isn’t what I was promised; my surgery didn’t turn out perfectly; my kitchen cabinets don’t match the flooring, etc, etc.? Now perhaps it may seem like a leap to go from this type of thinking to violence in our schools and on our streets, but just think about it for a minute.

Don’t we live in a day and age where we expect everything and everyone to be “perfect”? Don’t we want everything to happen or be, instantly? Remember the old days when it took 7 MINUTES to take a temperature (with a glass and mercury thermometer that you had to READ), or when you actually had to put a tea kettle on the stove and WAIT for the water to boil to make a cup of tea? Yes, we’ve come far in our inventions and our “time-saving” devices but at the cost of … what? Our patience, our ability to plan ahead, our empathy for someone or something that isn’t perfect or may take longer to do something than we’d like.

Raising children in an age when everything is almost instant and expected to be perfect can lead to much frustration and anger when things don’t happen immediately and don’t turn out perfectly. If we as adults have trouble remembering the 7 minute temperature-taking and the several minute tea kettle boiling is it any wonder our children become impatient when they have to WAIT for dinner or a new toy or a new computer?

Of course the violence that has erupted in schools and work places across our country over the last 2 decades is certainly far beyond the level of impatience I’ve suggested but it didn’t start out at that extreme either. It built over years of frustration, perhaps being bullied, left out, picked on at home, and just not fitting in.

You might be wondering why I’m addressing this in our Church newsletter article .Coping skills to effectively deal with anger which may be covering the pain of insecurity, alienation, disillusionment or ongoing conflict can be taught and modeled in our church communities. Our churches can become a true sanctuary, a safe place, for victims of violence. We need to educate ourselves about the problems of unresolved anger leading to violence. We can become involved with prevention through offering and or attending classes on violence, especially family violence. We can become aware of the signs of violence/abuse and know what to do if we identify them in someone we know. We can also volunteer at local shelters and family violence outreach programs

The Western Racine County Family Violence Coalition office is at: Love, Inc. in Burlington; the number is: 763-6226, ext. 29 and the contact person is Sherry Hartog.

Remember what it says in 1^st John 4:16-19, “…God is love, and those who live in love live in union with God and God lives in union with them…There is no fear in love; perfect love drives out fear. So then, love has not been made perfect in anyone who is afraid, because fear has to do with punishment.”

Look for a program on prevention of violence here in the near future.

Maureen Redmer, RN,

Aurora Parish Nurse Program