broken world

I found out two pieces of not-happy-making news today.

First, a couple of good friends of mine are moving. Now, they have good reasons - they are moving to be close to an adult daughter who is having some serious problems and will probably need prolonged help and care. But still, they are moving AWAY, and will leave holes, not just in my life, but in several volunteer groups they worked with.

That's the less-bad of the bad news. Because although I'm sad they're leaving, I understand and respect their reasons.

The other piece of news - well, I can't really share it, even with people who probably don't know the people involved, because I've been asked not to. But it's the sort of complicated, interpersonal, problematic, messy, sad-making stuff. It's going to have a lot of bad repercussions beyond even the people who are involved. And there is - as so often the case - literally nothing I can do to help the situation but pray.

The other difficult side of the situation is that when the situation becomes public, those of us who know the people involved will probably be encouraged (by people outside the situation) to take sides. I DO NOT WANT TO TAKE SIDES. I am sad enough about the situation without feeling the need to inject myself in it. It will also probably be a gossip generating situation and that kind of thing makes me want to smack my forehead against the wall. (And my S.O.P. is going to apply here: anyone who wants to try to pump me for gossip is going to hit a big wall of obfuscation, subject changing, and attempts to subtly shame the person into feeling bad about trying to pump me for information.)

I honestly do not understand the people who want to create drama - who stir the shit, to use a vulgar expression. The ones who figuratively throw rocks at hornet's nests to see what comes out. Because I find there's enough sadness to go around without my looking to cause any myself. I also don't understand the felt need of some people to put themselves closer to a sad situation - as I said before, to inject themselves into it. Just being a bystander is more than enough for me.

So I don't know. I have a feeling I'm going to be even less tolerant this week of the "Poor Me! Woe is me!" plaints of a particular person I know - when the woe-causing things are things I can look at and go, "it's stupid but not fatal to my happiness" and move on.

I also turn a year older this week. Whoopee. Another year close to being completely and totally invisible. And it happens on a day when I'm going to be too busy to even go out to lunch, so I'm not even going to really celebrate at all.

I think it's time for me to stop watching the news for a while, because I can tell this is the kind of week where I'll start screaming at my tv if I do.

I know, according to theology, that I shouldn't be surprised at the "brokenness" of the world, but it still kind of blindsides me sometimes.