I try to be positive. I try to focus on the good in people and situations. I really do.

Right now, however, I’m struggling with finding positives. The problem is, I’ve been reading news stories on my homepage. They are absolutely horrific. I don’t want to repeat them and give them more life here in this blog, nor do I want to dwell in these negative stories, but I do feel the need to comment.

I am saddened by the stories I read today that feature someone who is in some sort of position of power or control over someone else. In more than one of these stories their behavior was horrifyingly brutal, leading to the loss of life of an innocent. I’m shocked and disturbed by these stories. One featured a teen and a younger child, the other a police officer and a puppy. I felt the joy drain out of me as I read these. I am horrified.

There is so much good in the world. There are so many wonderful teens who are loving and caring and help others everyday. There are many more police officers who are compassionate and brave rather than brutal and cowardly, at least that’s what I believe. So what do I do? Bury my head in the sand and ignore the news stories? Pretend that these stories of cruelty don’t bother me? Of the two I prefer to ignore them.

It’s not that I think they will stop happening if I don’t pay attention, but at least those stories won’t steal my joy if I don’t give them my attention. I do, however, worry about turning a blind eye. I feel like we must be witnesses to the evil in the world so that we can contribute to ending it. I don’t know how to do that, other than to contribute in positive ways everyday. If we all did that, maybe there wouldn’t be so many damaged, angry people causing so much harm in the world.