Frustrations

For months, this painting has been coming together in my brain. I calculated the proper geometry, searched out a thrifted frame with the right proportions, chose my color palette, and carefully put paintbrush to paper. And when I was done...I hated it. 

So...back to the drawing board. I changed up the shades of each color, and switched from a painting to a cut paper collage so i could get the nice, crisp lines from scissors that my paintbrush refused to provide. 

And now? I love it. I'm so glad that I was frustrated with my first attempt, because that dissatisfaction is what pushed me to make the necessary changes. My painting went from meh to marvelous, and every time I glance up at this happy creation, I feel sweet success. 

* * * * * 

In the past few weeks, I've been having deep conversations with young people who are frustrated with the current state of the world. They are angry about the way our world's economic, political, and social structures affect their lives, and they despise the injustice and greed they see all around them. 

I mean, not that I blame them. There's an awful lot of darkness in the world today.

And when these young people bring their frustrations to me, I know that my role is 

to listen to them, 

to make sure they feel heard, 

and to help them feel that they are not alone, 

At the same time, I'm fighting the temptation to blurt this out:

YES. You're right! The world IS insanely frustrating. 

But it's going to be okay.

Because the way we learn and grow in this life is to deal with frustration. 

We study it.

We push back against it. 

We try different ideas to work around it, to push through it.

And when we succeed, which one way or another we usually do, our success is infinitely more sweet because of our struggle. 

But I don't say those words because their young ears aren't quite ready to hear them. 

* * * * *

Instead, I know that I am the one who needs 

to be reminded, 

to be comforted,

to be assured, 

that it's okay for all of us to be frustrated with the world.

But life has taught me 

that God is still in his heaven,

that the sun will come up tomorrow morning, 

and that often, if we keep staring down the problems in front of us, 

in our communities, 

across our nation, 

on our planet, 

we will eventually find ways to do better.

Eventually we will succeed.

And when we do, our successes will be infinitely more sweet because of our struggles. 

* * * * *

Even though I don't say these words out loud, I carry them 

in my heart, 

in my mind, 

in every cell of my body, 

so that when these young people come to me with their frustrations, my spirit of peace will shine like a tiny candle in the midst of a swirling storm.

I cannot cure these young people's frustrations.

But I can take their hands in the darkness and simply say, it's going to be okay.

* * * * *

Postscript: 

Let me acknowledge that many problems in this world - 

abuse, 

addiction, 

racism, 

mental illness, 

and grief, to name a few - 

are not simple "frustrations" and I don't mean to imply that these types of personal and deeply painful problems submit to easy answers or inevitably successful outcomes.