Don't exhaust yourself
Saw this post on Facebook from Buddhist Boot Camp and thought is was applicable to a lot of our situations. This is the way I felt when dealing with AH...it's not helpful to him and not helpful to me. And guess who I can control?
I saw a woman at a food court yelling at a guy for throwing his soda bottle in the trashcan instead of the recycling bin, which was conveniently placed right beside it. “What are you doing?!?!” She screamed at him, “Aren’t you concerned about the environment?”
He just looked at her and said, “Lady, I just ate a bacon double cheeseburger with a Pepsi, and I’m about to smoke another cigarette. I’m obviously not concerned about my own health, so what makes you think I give a %^&* about the environment?”
I love his response because it's really honest and a great reminder of how important it is to know your audience LOL! We don't all have the same values or priorities. Heck, if I was her and found recycling that important, I would have just waited for him to leave, moved the bottle from the trash to the recycling bin, and gone home feeling a little better about myself. Ya know? Because when changing the world is your fight, it will leave you exhausted. But if changing the world is simply your way of being, it will be effortless.
So don't run around shining your bright light in everyone's faces thinking you're so right about everything... just be like a lighthouse, shine your light, and those who are ready to come out of the dark will come to you. Be the peace.