Today at dinner, I saw one of my parents using their smartphone at the table at a family gathering.  I don't think there was anything wrong about it.  But thinking back to all those times when I was remanded as a child or young adult for quietly escaping into the solace of something like a GBA game, it made me feel sad.

Sad that the will and values of people are so malleable.  That when Twitter is in its heyday people regularly complain about it, but when it's "purportedly" on its "death throes", they begin to share gratefulness and appreciation for everything they've seen on it.  I feel sad that virtues are so quick to be bent, that people are willing to hold themselves to different standards depending on the situation.  Sometimes myself, too.

But I also feel sad at the oppression that results from power dynamics.  That when you are a child you get told everything not to do, and that when you are an adult, you get told everything you have to do.  That when I was put down and walked all over by certain adults and teachers in my life there was nowhere I felt that I could turn to save for disassociation.

It reminded me that even in the times that I feel spurred to admonitions, I must remember to be gracious and humble.  To not assume a holier-than-thou attitude, to be open-minded even as I am steadfast, and to forgive even as I detest.  It is only through forgiving others that we can begin to forgive ourselves.  Only by believing that others will improve, that we can understand how to repair our broken selves.