I’m sure at some
point, someone, somewhere wronged you somehow.
I know it has
happened to me. There are times when it really hurts, and I think this is
especially true if the doer is someone close to you, or seemingly close to you.
Sometimes, the hurt or the wrong is just keenly and inherently wrong regardless
of whether or not the doer is close to you.
Most of the time,
we want some sort of Justice, and Justice can take many forms. A verbal
apology. A written apology. Money for replacement if something was taken or
stolen or damaged.
Sometimes,
however, we confuse Justice with revenge.
Revenge is
payback. We want the doer to “hurt” as much as we do or did. We want to doer to
suffer like we do or did. And maybe, we might want the doer to suffer even more
than we do or did. Seems that way sometimes, doesn’t it?
The confusion
between Justice and revenge is real. I think it goes back to our primal urges,
that reptilian part of our nature where fight or flight lives (and sometimes,
reigns).
Eleanor Roosevelt
is one of my heroes. If you don’t know much about her, you might want to do a
Google search because she overcame and rose up and in so many ways, contributed
to the good of our society, and some of that good is still present with us
today.
At any rate, I
found a quote this past week that spoke to me. Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Justice
cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both.”
Think about that
for a minute. Not just one side, but both sides need Justice.
That means when you
or I have been wronged, yes, we have a right to expect that there will be
Justice done. Yet, for the doer, he or she also needs Justice. Both sides
deserve it.
So . . . what
might Justice for the doer look like?
Maybe it is as
simple as being heard. Maybe the doer explains what happened and why, and
offers a sincere apology, makes an effort to “fix” or “repair” the situation.
Much different than revenge, right? With revenge, we don’t care about the
reason or the feeling. With revenge, we simply want payback, and at times, the
more the better.
But with Justice,
there is an effort to repair the relationship. To fix it. To understand. Franklin
Covey in his book lists Habit #5: Seek first to understand, then to be
understood.
Tough to do
sometimes, isn’t it? Sometimes the greater the hurt and the greater the harm,
the less we want to understand. As I said earlier, the greater the hurt, we
want payback. Justice, well, not so much.
But we are human.
As I’ve said many times as I write these posts, we’re in this together. It is a
lot easier to join in and be a part of a group, to connect, rather than ostracize.
We are stronger together than we are alone. No one likes to be shunned, to be
left out. Personally, I’d rather have someone yell at me than give me the
silent treatment or to be excluded. To me, silent treatment or exclusion is way
more painful than any physical hurt that can be done to me. I think most of us
feel that way.
Justice for both.
Seeking to understand, then to be understood. Sometimes a lot harder in
practice than it is to pay lip service to, isn’t it? But to be understood and
to have real Justice- for both- is in the end, much more beneficial for you,
for me, and for society as a whole.
Something to think about . . .
Live Your Life,
and Make A Difference!
To My Readers:
Connect with me on Social Media:
Twitter at @jrlewisauthor
Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/Joseph.Lewis.Author
There have been several great reviews for Spiral Into
Darkness:
“If you enjoy
thrillers, especially psychological ones, Spiral
Into Darkness by Joseph Lewis will grab you good and proper in the opening
two chapters. You will find yourself avidly turning pages as a serial killer
accosts his victims, confirms their identities and blasts away their faces with
a .38 pistol. If you are interested in both the good and bad sides of humanity
and why we each turn out as we do, Spiral
Into Darkness won’t disappoint.” Readers
Favorites
“The Bottom Line: A thoroughly compulsive police procedural
by one of America’s most promising new writers. Joseph Lewis, author of our
Best of 2018 pick Caught in a Web, is back with another crime thriller
featuring world-weary Milwaukee detective Jamie Graff . . . While Lewis
savagely explores romance, drama, and sexuality with his wider cast of characters,
Jamie’s interpersonal life is refreshingly free of drama for a cop, enabling
him to be the determined, resourceful rock capable of cracking the case. The
result is a thoroughly compulsive crime thriller.” Best Thrillers
You can find Spiral Into Darkness on Amazon at https://amzn.to/2RBWvTm and on Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spiral-into-darkness-joseph-lewis/1129937958;jsessionid=0C9F7881E2F56139FAD36435022CB35D.prodny_store01-atgap18?ean=9781684332090
Best Thrillers had
previously reviewed my book, Caught in a
Web. It was named as a PenCraft
Literary Award Winner for Thriller Fiction! Best Thrillers called it “one of the best crime thriller books of
the year!” I am both proud and humbled.
You can find Caught in a Web on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKF7696
or on Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/caught-in-a-web-joseph-lewis/1128250923?ean=9781684330249
If you do read Caught in a Web, Spiral Into Darkness, or any of my other books, please leave a
rating and a review. I would appreciate it. Thanks for this consideration!
Spiral Into Darkness:
He blends in. He
is successful, intelligent and methodical. He has a list and has murdered eight
on it so far. There is no discernible pattern. There are no clues. There are no
leads. The only thing the FBI and local police have to go on is the method of
death: two bullets to the face- gruesome and meant to send a message. But it’s
difficult to understand any message coming from a dark and damaged mind. Two
adopted boys, struggling in their own world, have no idea they are the next
targets. Neither does their family. And neither does local law enforcement. https://amzn.to/2RBWvTm
Caught in a Web:
The bodies of high
school and middle school kids are found dead from an overdose of heroin and
fentanyl. The drug trade along the I-94 and I-43 corridors and the Milwaukee
Metro area is controlled by MS-13, a violent gang originating from El Salvador.
Ricardo Fuentes is sent from Chicago to Waukesha to find out who is cutting in
on their business, shut it down and teach them a lesson. But he has an ulterior
motive: find and kill a fifteen-year-old boy, George Tokay, who had killed his
cousin the previous summer.
Detectives Jamie
Graff, Pat O’Connor and Paul Eiselmann race to find the source of the drugs,
shut down the ring, and find Fuentes before he kills anyone else, especially
George or members of his family. The three detectives discover the ring has its
roots in a high school among the students and staff. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKF7696
Book One of the Lives Trilogy, Stolen Lives:
Two thirteen year
old boys are abducted off a safe suburban street. Kelliher and his team of FBI
agents have 24 hours to find them or they’ll end up like all the others- dead!
They have no leads, no clues, and nothing to go on. And the possibility exists
that one of his team members might be involved. http://tinyurl.com/Stolen-Lives-J-Lewis
Book Two of the Lives Trilogy, Shattered Lives:
Six men escaped
and are out for revenge. The boys, recently freed from captivity, are in danger
and so are their families, but they don’t know it. The FBI has no clues, no
leads, and nothing to go on and because of that, cannot protect them. http://tinyurl.com/Shattered-Lives-J-Lewis
Book Three of the Lives Trilogy, Splintered Lives:
A 14 year old boy
knows the end is coming. What he doesn’t know is when, where or by whom.
Without that knowledge, neither he nor the FBI can protect him or his family.
The Lives Trilogy Prequel, Taking Lives:
FBI Agent Pete
Kelliher and his partner search for the clues behind the bodies of six boys
left in various and remote parts of the country. Even though they don’t know
one another, the lives of FBI Kelliher, 11 year old Brett McGovern, and 11 year
old George Tokay are separate pieces of a puzzle. The two boys become
interwoven with the same thread that Pete Kelliher holds in his hand. The three
of them are on a collision course and when that happens, their lives are in
jeopardy as each search for a way out. http://tinyurl.com/Taking-Lives-J-Lewis
Photo courtesy of
Peter Forster and Unsplash
