The Way of Integrity: Finding the Path to Your True Self

by Martha Beck

EXERCISE: Fighting monsters Step one: Pick your issue. Start by thinking of a controversial social issue you really care about. It might be gun control, immigration, capital punishment, animal rights—any issue will do, as long as you have a strong opinion about it, and you know there are people who strongly hold the opposite opinion. Write it here: Step two: Name the “others.” Focus for a moment on the people who disagree with you. Imagine them en masse, marching in the streets, posting on Twitter, denouncing things you care about. Maybe you already have a phrase to describe them, like “less-informed voters” or “misguided children of God” or “knuckle-dragging, scum-sucking, pea-brained morons.” But here and now, let’s just call them “monsters.” Step three: Let your blood boil. Think for a moment about the way your monsters behave, the damage they do. Really feel all the anger and outrage this creates. Once your blood is boiling, fill in the following blanks as if you were writing your monsters an anonymous letter. This is for your eyes only, so don’t hold back. Write what you think in your most politically incorrect moments. Don’t try to make your words pretty or polite. Use a separate sheet of paper if you need more space. To My Monsters: Let me be frank. Here’s what I don’t like about you: Here’s what you do that’s just plain wrong: Here’s what would happen to the world if you and your kind had control of it: Here’s what I hope happens to limit your power...