Get Mad at God if you need to!

When it's all too much, or things seem unfair, or out of balance...here's a suggestion: take a look at what you are learning in this situation. That alone may begin to shift things.

A second option: Get mad at God! Or get mad at the Universe, Creator, Allah (fill in with your favorite name for the Divine). If you were brought up in a strict religion, this might sound wrong or even sacriligeous.

Try it, you'll like it. And in my experience at least, and in the experience of many Jews (remember, the Jews are the ones who argued with the angelic messenger of God) no thunderbolts or cosmic revenge will ensue.

While I am not religious or particularly identified with the Jewish religion of my birth, and my parents professed to be atheists, I understand more and more how culturally Jewish my upbringing was. "Question all authority and conventional wisdom", and go ahead and argue with the Top Brass--that's what I learned at home and what we practiced (Except when it came to questioning the authority of my parents, of course!).

The Jews have a specialty (excuse the sweeping generalization, I know we can't lump all individual Jews, or any religious or ethnic group, for that matter, itno a homogeneous glob) of contention: arguing and disagreeing, and expressing our unique opinions. Last night at my first Jewish education event since the tender age of 12, I discovered, or re-discovered that Judaism is filled with arguments, dicussions, comments and comments on the comments. We don't even seem to have a unified concept of God!

So don't worry about dishing to the Divine. S/he can take it and has probably heard it all before.

Years ago, living in YC and going through tough times financially and working in a stressful job, I sat on a rock one day in Riverside Park, by the Hudson River, and screamed, vented and wailed to God. It helped!

This week, on Tuesday morning, I had another opportunity to practice this.
After I vented, out loud and also in my diary, something did shift and I began to feel like I could at least put one foot in front of the other again.

I invite you, whenever you need to, and whatever religion you were brought up in...let it rip. Tell Creator your deepest fears, frustrations and angers. When you do this, and you really let go, you open the way for grace, for help to arrive.

Let me know what happens if you do try it!