One night in the pale moonlight, a pack of white wolves found a man named Dan. Smart guy, he ran. And lucky for he, there was a nearby tree, which he climbed just in time to keep his butt bite free. The wolves barked, bayed, and leapt, but at climbing were clumsy, ineffective, and inept. Soon the canine horde grew bored. They howled at Dan or the moon, peed on the tree, and left. Dan wept with relief, dismounted the tree, and found his way home with intact skin and bones.
The next day at a meal Dan shared about the harrowing ordeal with a friend named Ben who empathized with curiosity over Dan's feels.
Ben asked Dan if he was offended by the wolves' aggressive behavior. Dan said no offense was felt from the moonlit chase he'd been dealt, thanking the tree as his saviour.
Skeptical, Ben next wanted to know if Dan was repressing a show of anger that he'd been attacked by the bloodthirsty wolf pack. Dan said, "As a matter of fact, when I look back and inside, no anger hides. Only joy from knowing I'm oh so alive."
Ben thought some more and asked Dan if he wanted to settle the score by punishing that pack of canines. Dan said to his friend that he had no thoughts of revenge, nor any desire to harm their hairy hides.
Finally, Ben's curiosity and perplexity about Dan's seemingly carefree attitude was too much for the friend to hold in.
"Those wolves attacked with no show of respect. How can you not be offended or mad or not want bloody revenge? In your shoes I'd be totally unhinged!"
"They were just being wolves, doing what they do. Who am I to say or carry the weight of judgement, offense, or rue?"
#choice #offense #judgement #revenge #empathy #language #anarchocapitalism #liberation #empowerment #nvc #nonviolentcommunication #compassion
