Let Us Call This Entry "Karma"

Since I was in my early 20s, I've believed in Karma. I may not have always known what to call it, and I didn't always practice in trying to balance my own karma but, for lack of a better word, I have honestly believed in doing what was right. Sometimes I did what was right to my own detriment, sometimes against my better judgement, and occasionally I did it very begrudgingly ... but still, I endeavored to at least TRY to do right.

I didn't always do what was right quietly, which I believe - for me anyway - should be part of the equation. Things that are done for the best intentions get tarnished when noise is made while doing them. And, yes, it's possible that the person doing "right" may be unfairly judged as being boastful or proud when, in fact, that could not be the case. When I was younger, I'm not ashamed to admit that I sometimes enjoyed the attention that came with doing right. I never once looked for that recognition, but I never walked away from it, either. I know now - for me anyway - that pride has no place in doing the right thing.

Like most folks walking this planet, I have had quite a few people - some who knew me, some who never met me - pass judgement on my "karma-driven" actions. And, like most folks walking this planet, I know I have passed judgement on others for their "karma-driven" actions, too. Damn that whole "being human" thing!

So it is because of all of what I've just written that I find myself in a state of confusion. If someone does something that is, in polite society, unseemly, should that person be surprised if karma smacks them around a little bit? What about if that person does something unseemly time and again ... are they still entitled to attention and/or support when things go badly for them? At what point does the individual providing sympathy sit down and say "yanno, Albert Einstein famously said that the very definition of 'insanity' was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results". In other words, when is it alright to wipe your hands of a highly-probable mess in the making and walk away?

I have known some people who only learn from their mistakes. I mean that they EXCLUSIVELY learn from just their foul-ups ... nothing else counts. It is difficult to not feel a little smug ... self-righteous ... or at least sing a verse of "I told you so" to yourself when the wheels fall from their cart. In the German language, they go beyond "smug" and call this sensation "Schadenfreude" - pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others. There is a whole huge industry built on this feeling and, if you think I'm wrong, then you've obviously never read a tabloid-magazine in your life.

Typically I try to wrap things up by this point, but I'm still chewing on the turmoil in my gut. I have empathy for people when things go wrong, and I have sadness when I realize that others are experiencing pain, loss, disappointment ... but the question still nags: "How did you not realize this was going to go badly?"

The trick, I think, is to realize that it is not my place to comment, not my judgement to make, and not my karma to deliver.