Of Weight Loss and World Peace

The announcement of a mass murderer’s death was announced last night, making Facebook a verbal warzone. Some people were morbidly excited, vengeance dripping from their posts like bloody spit from wild dogs. Some spewed dissent anywhere they could play Devil’s Advocate. Some cheered for Obama’s mad terrorist-killing ninja skills, their conservative counterparts angrily protesting that the president had nothing to do with anything good ever and that Commander-n-Chief is really more of a casual title, like “World’s Greatest Dad” or “Governor of South Carolina”. Still others protested that his death doesn’t stop the war and, therefore, everyone should stop celebrating anything because it’s only going to make things worse in the end.

That’s what got me. The folks who said “THIS DOESN’T DO ANYTHING” weighed on my mind.

“The wars not over yall this is just the beginning so all yall can all stop celebrating”

Well, duh, friend from high school who hates punctuation. Of course the war is not over. I don’t think anybody thinks it is. In fact, most of us think we still have a lot of ground to cover. People are celebrating what they hope to be a step in the right direction.

Right?

To bring it back to what this blog is actually about, I was excited to lose 2 pounds my first week on WW, but I certainly didn’t think I was done there. It’s taken perseverance, half-pound losses that slowly work towards full ones. I had a three week plateau where the scale didn’t seem to move even though I was doing everything right. I didn’t see the results of the good I was doing for three agonizing weeks, but was rewarded for my perseverance with a three pound loss the next week.

Weight loss and World Peace have that very much in common. They are both cumulative efforts, sums of many small victories and setbacks that hopefully tip the scales on the side of good. Neither happens overnight, though we desire it to do so. Nobody agrees upon the best method to make it happen, though most think their method is the only one that will work. Both efforts are ongoing. They move in the right direction with 10 extra minutes on the treadmill or an outstretched hand. They can suffer with a dark thought or an extra cupcake. But, through metaphorical feast and famine, we carry on. When we are the victor, we cheer for a moment then we carry on. When we have a setback, we shake our head, wipe our eyes, and we carry on.

It’s the “carry on” in us that makes us resilient. It’s what makes us become better.

I leave you with my final Facebook post last night. My first post about the event was in jest, as many of my posts are, but this one is how I feel:

“So, here's the thing. I celebrate a victory that I hope is a step in the way of peace. I pray for the family and loved ones of someone who was ultimately a man, not a god, not an enemy, but a fellow human. I mourn the potential that was wasted on a life filled with hate and destruction. I pray for the ability to forgive and love a man who would not do the same for me.”