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dec. 5-11, 2012

The WoodsTock IndependenT

News

On kindness, any time of year

Column
As the holidays approach, it is easy for all of us to get caught up in the stress and anxiety of getting from place to place in the crowds and finding that perfect gift while we maneuver our way through the chaos of commercialism. At a time of the year when we should be feeling happy and most generous toward our fellow human beings, instead of feeling goodwill many of us feel like hiding under a rock and avoiding everyone until the season is over. Without sounding negative, I have noticed over the last decade it seems people are becoming crabbier and less understanding of one another not just around the holidays but, in general, throughout the year. I myself am guilty of feeling like a grinch for no good reason. When I arrived back home last year after living in Asia for more than two years, I could not believe how angry and impatient people seemed at the airport. Still in a happygo-lucky daze from living a basically stress-free expat life, I reimmersed myself in U.S. culture and thought my laid-back attitude would last due to my newly Rhonda enlightened worldview. Mix For the first few months, all was Mix well, but I soon Messages became caught up once again in the reality of living in our fast-paced culture. Tension returned and I watched somewhat helplessly as that happygo-lucky daze drifted further away, though I could still feel it wafting in from time to time. Dont get me wrong Im proud to be an American but I do believe there are places around the world that are much more carefree than our country. It is a sad truth, but I do think there is something we can do about it change our attitudes. Recently, a cousin of mine was pulled over by a police officer for accidentally running through a stop sign. My cousins two dogs also were in the car, and, as the officer approached, the dogs began to bark. The officer proceeded to tell my cousin Contain your dogs or I will shoot them. Now, my cousin had a lot on his mind, which was most likely why he passed through the stop sign. His 3-month-old son was about to undergo serious surgery in which the baby had to endure three blood transfusions. The last thing my cousin needed to hear was someone threatening to shoot his dogs. The officer wrote him a ticket, unapologetic and unaware of the state of my cousins emotions or his mind at the time of his traffic violation. Plato once said Be kind, for every-

one you meet is fighting a hard battle. Each day we can choose how to react and how to respond to everyone around us and what they may or may not be doing. All of us can experience moments of great amounts of stress due to a variety of factors including the chaos of the holidays or the influence of the culture in which we live and it would be helpful for us to remember we are all in this together. We all have personal issues we deal with, painful things the outside world cannot necessarily see. Yet sometimes these issues impact each of us unknowingly as we drive too slowly or carelessly in traffic, miss a stop sign, forget an important date, make a mistake at work. This Christmas as well as throughout the year lets try to be more patient with our fellow brothers and sisters. We never know what trials they may be enduring.

Rhonda Mix is a staff writer for The Woodstock Independent.

In BrIef

Top ten fugitive arrested

Justin e. dean, a Wonder Lake man designated by the Mchenry county sheriffs department as a top ten fugitive, was arrested nov. 28 in Mchenry on a warrant for possession of a stolen firearm. Authorities said the firearm was linked to an apparent accidental shooting in Volo in late october. dean, 21, 4602 e. Wonder Lake Road, Wonder Lake, was charged with unlawful sale of a stolen firearm, unlawful possession of a handgun, concealing and aiding a fugitive, theft and unlawful possession of a firearm with an expired firearm owner identification card. dean was turned over to the Mchenry county correctional Facility. his bond was set at $80,000. court date was to be set.