Hate is getting a very bad rap. Partly due to misinterpretation and partly due to assumption.

Hate is a perfectly normal, human, natural and healthy emotion. It is just as natural and healthy as love, joy, fear, sadness, pride and anger.

The health or toxic nature of an emotion isn’t the emotion itself. Rather, it is the reaction we have to it and the action that the reaction produces. Those reactions get us into all kinds of trouble.

But, while we cannot usually control the emotion, we can usually control the reaction. And we can always control the action produced.

Our own, individual responsibility does not come from the emotion. It does not come entirely from the reaction . . . but our actions are wholly our own and the responsibilities thereof is wholly our own.

Enough with, “I hate [fill in the blank] and so I did [fill in the blank].” We can replace the word ‘love’ for the word ‘hate’ and the fact would be just the same. Perhaps, in our day to day lives, it produces more heartache over the years.

We can learn to control (be responsible for) our actions. That will begin to teach us to tame our reactions. Will it ever change our emotions? I don’t know. I doubt it. But it can begin to direct our

When we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change.

Neil