What a Difference a Day Makes

My birthday was yesterday. Another year came and went with so much to reflect on. Yesterday was a good day. I received many well-wishes and "Happy Birthdays" from people all across the globe.

Today, it's like a new year came and changed everything. So much strife and anguish permeates today. A friend posted how he was sick of hearing about the conflict in Gaza and posed these two questions:

"1. If someone was lobbing rockets into the US everyday what do you think we would do about it?"

"2. Should the blame for the violence not fall on Hamas, terrorists who demand the destuction of Israel which the people of Gaza legally elected?"

 This post received sympathy and also ire. A heated and often dirty discussion proceeded (as it often does online) from two camps. One camp is the American native who sees Israel as the aggressor in the current situation in Gaza, distasteful of having US support and funds furthering the conflict. The other camp is Israeli natives and supporters who see Israel as being the defenders of their land against terrorist groups along the Gaza Strip.

For me, there is no simple answer to his questions. I won't even begin to delve into such murky waters. But that isn't really the point of why I bring this up. The reason I bring it up is how quickly the conversation turned into mud flinging and derisiveness. Granted, when such a post comes along such as this one, it easily has the potential for anger and bitterness to well up to the surface. But does it always have to? Is it now impossible, for whatever reason, be it the relative safety our computers grant us to the pomposity of people to move towards conflict, for people to have a civil conversation while expressing opposing views? Is the art of debate dead? Perhaps that is a rhetorical question, as anyone who has ever watched politics at any great length already knows that civil debates are almost all but gone, especially online. As it sits, both parties have disengaged themselves from the conversation before their anger reaches a boiling point and goes everywhere. They both agreed it was for the best, which is probably the only thing that they had agreed upon during their entire conversation.

Another incident occurred today along another a completely different but still upsetting line. Another friend of mine, after years of schooling, has finally gained his degree in the field of his dreams. But it has been tainted with pain and sorrow of losing a love through hurt feelings and anguish. Now, he despises the very degree that he has worked so hard to earn and has written off social media altogether, saying that today will be his last post ever. Here is a man that should be perhaps the happiest he has ever been, but instead he is lost and angry and sad. His joy has been taken from him. I do not know of the specific circumstances to how he came to this point, and I won't speculate on how or why he is where he is today. But I will say that it saddens me to see such a great accomplishment be tarnished by something that, to me, is unrelated.

I understand that school is how he got to know this person, so the two are invariably linked. But he should be proud of where he has come. He has gained what he wanted in his professional life. His personal life is turbulent sure, but should that destroy years of work? Perhaps he is speaking with high emotion and will take up a job using his newly acquired degree. But what if he doesn't? What if the pain he has experienced is so great that it truly removes him from his life's passion forever? I honestly don't know what is more sad. Him feeling the grief that he does now or the grief he could experience by giving up on what he has wanted for years. Either way, I hope he finds his way to happiness, however he gets there.

Today is such a different day from yesterday. And I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind having another birthday. Today has just been too emotional and painful.