WHY DO BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE
Why is it that bad things happen to good people? We’ve all asked that question from time to time but when it hits home it carries even more meaning. We struggle to understand the logic in it but soon we find that we just are not meant to understand everything that happens in life. We hear our troubles and problems in life will make us stronger, better people. These statements are so easy to make when you are on the outside looking in but when you are in the midst of it – it’s not so easy. Rephrasing the first sentence I think it wiser for us to ask, what our role is when bad things happen to good people. In looking and rereading both phrases we have no power or even true understanding with the first version but the second phrasing passes the control and opportunity to us.
When bad things happen we often lash out blaming God or worse yet questioning God’s very existence. Some of us draw comfort in finding God through trauma and still others pull away or try bargaining with God. Many of us internalize trauma as a form of punishment. Trauma in our lives is not for us to understand the whys but to learn to be gentle and loving with each other and with ourselves. It teaches us that we are not in control of everything as we like to imagine. Sometimes through trauma it brings out the very best in us. It often increases our desire to be there, help, love, reach out and be kinder - all the attributes that should come naturally but many of us find are only tapped into when forced.
If by some supernatural means we were enlightened to the reason why traumatic events happen I believe we would lose much of our compassion for each other. Understanding the reason why people are afflicted with tragic events, we would be far less likely to reach out to each other in comfort and love. It would be more of an “I told you so” world then it already is. If you think about it, our world would become a very dark place. Understanding why tragedy befalls the innocents of this world we would no longer feel their pain or hear their cries. How tragic would that be? It’s incredibly hard to see anyone suffer – as we suffer with them through our compassion. Can you imagine a world where there wouldn’t be any compassion for each other because we know why they are suffering? Nothing could be more tragic then watching someone suffering and not feel anything for them.
When tragedy or traumatic events happen in our lives we go through a gamut of emotions and feelings. Anger, disbelief, frustration, outrage and injustice are but a few. This is when we need to turn those feelings into action. We can make a difference no matter how small. Take any opportunity presented to you to make someone’s life better or situation easier. We do not need to know the whys of the world. We just need to be the people who were created to make it a special place.