Take the high road. Ignore it. Rise above it. It’s not important. It. It. What is it? It can hide itself behind a smile. It can hide itself behind a greeting. It can hide itself behind a gesture. Let me define it. This nebulous, amorphous “It” is hatred. Such a strong and negative emotion that brings nothing but illness, poverty, strife and discord to all that it envelopes.

Good morning. Two words that can convey enthusiasm, joy, sincerity, indifference, or even resignation. On this morning a stranger stands at the entrance to a building. Though I see him every day, I do not see him. He’s one of the thousands of faceless people who pass through my life. People I have no interest in knowing. People whose lives have nothing to do with mine. Their existence is tangential to mine. Likewise, I am tangential to their existence. Until this morning, that is what I assumed.

The stranger greets me with a “good morning.” My assured gait falters.  I stop in midstride. Why? Because the tone of his greeting is loaded with a lifetime of hatred and rage. When I look at him, I see such malevolence and scorn in his eyes that I cringe. It’s as if he’s struck my cheek with the back of his hand. I feel assaulted.

His face displays a mimicry of a smile. Cold. Insincere. White shark teeth. How dare I be joyful? How dare I be at peace? How dare I love my life? These questions lay like maggots beneath the shit of his “Good morning.”