This is a question I have contemplated over the last few days, and I now understand that my perception is the key factor in how I make that decision.

We know that looking at our perceptions, preconceived notions, and beliefs creates the framework that we use to navigate our lives. Most of the time, those tools work well. They guide us to the people, places, and experiences that enrich and teach us about the world and ourselves. It helps us determine what we will accept and what we will reject.  It can also expose not only the best parts of us, but also the worst.

We all have a “line” we won’t cross, a hard stop we have created from the guidelines of our moral compass. The U.S. appears to be a catalyst for people worldwide becoming willing to cross lines they would have never crossed before. The result has been celebratory for some and devastating for others.

My perception and beliefs dictate that any action that causes unnecessary pain to others is a line I don’t want to cross. It may be simplistic in design, but that is the basic premise I work from. It seems to me that for some, the line moves. When it comes to something that doesn’t affect them personally, they will cross over the line with no hesitation. When it comes to something that directly affects them, they hold a strict boundary.

Narrative makes a difference. What stories are you being told? What stories are you clinging to? The question to ask yourself is, are those stories true? It’s possible that you are holding fast to something that is only partially true. Why would someone put out a story that is only partially based on facts? Control. Anyone they can get to believe what they want them to believe is now partially under their control.

What someone holds to be true affects where the line is drawn, but we often forget that our perspective in a situation is only one angle, one position among many. We tend to believe that our position is the only one that matters.

What does this have to do with metaphysics? Your beliefs shape the vibration of your energy. Actions that hurt people unnecessarily are low vibration. If you believe in or support those actions, your energy will resonate in the lower vibrations. If you support and engage in actions that help people, bring relief, safety, and a sense of security to others, that is high-vibration energy. This is always the goal.

Right or wrong, time will tell, but in the meantime, it’s in our best interest to act and speak with kindness. To act and speak with fairness. To scrutinize the stories we’ve been told and determine where we might have a bias. Make your choices consciously. Question everything, take nothing for granted, assume nothing.  In doing these things, you can determine where your line happens to be and use your free will to decide on which side of that line you choose to stand.