… and your little dog too.

What a classic line from a wonderful movie. It scares me a little, every time I hear it. Doesn’t it just ooze with hatred and revenge?

What got me to thinking about all of this?

Well, last Friday was the first in a series of deadlines at the Nevada Legislature – a very important day when most bills move forward and some die.

I was in the building late in the afternoon and walked passed several conversations in the halls. Some people were relieved and joyous … while others were disappointed and huddling.

The fates of billa are decided by people – legislators who make the decision to vote “yay” or “nay” on a particular piece of legislation. Sometimes, for reasons they are very clear about and sometimes, we don’t know exactly why they voted the way they did.

One thing is for sure – there is a strong urge to associate the person with the vote …  I like him/her because they voted “with me” or I don’t because he/she voted on the “other side” of my issue.

Sadly, I have often seen the latter sentiment turn into the desire for some kind of revenge – which isn’t always obvious or visible. It’s worked behind the scenes and may take a while to unfold.

I know that it’s difficult to separate the vote from the person, however, that’s a key to avoid slipping into “revenge.”

Revenge is very time consuming and diverts precious energy from the rest of your life.

Some may feel that “revenge is sweet,” but I would argue that it gets in the way of getting a clearer view of the substantive problem and working constructively on how to gain ground on another day.

Jeanette