Working On A Quirky Graph

Karma is fun. It literally doesn’t matter if I get to see karma in action or if karma had seen fit to teach me a lesson, it is a delicious treat to watch it play out. And there are so many versions! There is instant karma, where it is immediate, and has some ironic undertones, but purely exists to bite you in the ass for your audacity.

There is the show burn karma. Like unchecked embers in your fireplace or slowly frying wires in your electrical outlet, the slow burn waits for you to forget whatever mistakes, passive aggressive comments/actions or overt ill will you’ve cultivated to come back and help you reap what you’ve sown. The slow burn is not as effective because you’ve already forgotten why you’ve earned this retribution and now you’re blaming bad luck, that one guy on your left or the whole of the universe for the punishment that is devouring you like a four course meal.

Karma seems to be the universal kick in the pants for breaking the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule can be found in almost all religious incantations, the Christian version being ‘do unto others.’

The Buddhist version:

“Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.”-Tripitaka Udana-Varga 5:18

The Islamic version:

“Additionally, the Prophet Muhammad said there is no excuse for committing unjust acts: ‘Do not be people without minds of your own, saying that if others treat you well you will treat them well, and that if they do wrong you will do wrong to them. Instead, accustom yourselves to do good if people do good and not to do wrong (even) if they do evil.’”-Al-Tirmidhi

I’m not sure we adhere to all these versions, all these religious leaders telling us to do right by others. We get caught up in our own lives, or own wants and desires, our needs and fears and problems and elations, and the never ending chase of what makes us feel good and loved, happy and somewhat healthy, constantly appeasing our own id instead of measuring how our chase of contentment is impacting others. It’s so very easy to do.

This year has been sort of a gut check. Several of us have been coasting through our lives, not necessarily paying attention to how our actions have affected others. Lives have been lost. Jobs have been downsized. Companies closed due to a pandemic and, in turn, how the fallout was handled by everyone. There are long lines at food banks. People who were already living paycheck to paycheck are out of a job, and potentially homeless. Mental and physical health have been effected and we still seem to be in the thick of it.

I know I am more conscious of how my actions work on others. All you can do at this point is try and make as much of a positive impact on as many as you can. Earlier in the day I was unhappy about the way some of us had been paid out. A simple policy that may not have been a big deal any other time suddenly seemed like a huge miscarriage of justice. I let my boss know my thoughts and after an hour or so, they came back with a resolution that I could agree with. But I found myself checking that everyone in this particular boat would get the same dispensation. It was the right thing to do. Luckily the company saw it the same way I did, and we will be reimbursed. A happy ending.

But now, I’m stuck at work, listening to house music while coffee is brewing and my brain is exploding. This may be hell. I will have to do some research polls to determine one way or the other, but if it isn’t hell, then it’s either just a bad day or it’s karmic payback.

And while I’m being served as a karmic four course meal, I’ll be damned if I can remember why.