The Thin Red Line

 

Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,

                              --Rudyard Kipling                    

 

I have often wondered to myself:

What is this war between people? What is it that makes them unable to ignore wrongdoing? How can they harbour ill feelings? I can't.

 

It's a thin red line we stand behind.

 

Try as I may, I have been unable to condemn a behaviour which seems to stem from self-preservation in the face of a wound given by another. One has to heal. Though I'm sure I cannot yet fathom a quarantine which eliminates the perpetrator from the life of the wounded.

 

I think I have begun to be bothered by a new truth.

 

First, we know we are knicked with depravity and will inevitably partake in immoral action. Second, we know that if we surround ourselves with people then they will suffer from our self-motivated deeds. We will hurt their trust, their hearts, and we will negatively alter their lives. The unavoidability of this does not make it easier to swallow for our victims. The facts will e'er remain that we did not have to do it.

 

I can take heart in one thing. As much as I obsess over winning the approval of people, I now realize this is an empty practise. People do not have the capability, for the most part, of moving past some irrevocable pain. God does. This does not make the person who does not wrong or lesser, nor does it mean they have not forgiven. It is yet another deficiency in the human heart and head.

 

While it reamins that some will truly love you no matter what hurt you inflict on them or people they love, others simply find themselves unable to do so.

 

I will lose my favour with people. Probably sooner than later. If I believe that, then it becomes important that I live in such a way that pleases God and not man. Because man is incapable of a certain level and a certain consistency of forgiveness. So when wrong is done, it is our responsibility to approach the victims, apologize, beg forgiveness, and subsequently carry on knowing that God knows our heart in all its filth and he knows the plans he has for us. He is the audience for whom we should strive to please.