Addicted To Nice
There are those who would rather smile and sing a Disney tune than discuss racial injustice. There are those who'd rather make an eye-rolling joke about the violence in Chicago's streets than make a concerted effort to discuss the policies, systems and humans that are both responsible for and affected by the violence. There are people who don't think family dinner is a good time to talk about these types of things.
The stomach tightens and sinks.
The heart and lungs follow.
It’s a confounding reaction to a receipt of affection.
It’s familiar, and, therefore, oddly comforting.
But familiarity can be a curse.
A cursed reminder of what once went wrong when you were just trying to do things right this time.
This time it’ll be different, you say.
Why? You’re different, but what are you doing differently?