Daily Excerpt: Anger Anonymous (Ortman) - Anger Styles
excerpt from Anger Anonymous - CHAPTER ONE ANGER STYLES: TENDING THE FIRE “Anger’s my meat. I sup upon myself and so shall starve with feeding.” —William Shakespeare Everybody gets angry. “But not me,” I told myself. In my father’s drunken rages, I witnessed the devastating effects of uncontrolled anger. I saw dealing with anger as playing with fire. I could easily get burned. I decided at a young age, without really mak bing a conscious choice, to smother any smoking tinders of irritation I felt. In remaining calm and controlled, I found safety and, I believed, acceptance and admiration from others. It was only many years later that I began to recognize the awful price I paid for my pseudo-tranquility. ANGER, A POWERFUL ENERGY Anger is a natural energy, like fire. Our earliest ancestors witnessed the power of fire in lightning storms and raging forest fires. They also enjoyed the light and warmth it provided in their cold, dark world. It was like a god to them. They feared and