When we are young we are taught what is right and what is wrong. As kids, things often seem just whether black or white, that is how we learn to distinguish contrasts. But as we grow up, we may lose that clarity and no longer accurately distinguish right from wrong or good from evil. This post’s purpose is reflecting about that.

At the beginning

During our childhood, our parents teach us so that we learn that our actions have consequences, that wrong actions will bring us punishment as result.

While they are in charge of our education it’s up to them to show us how to do good, they do this by letting us know that right deeds are rewarded and conversely, the wrong are punished. Years elapse and we stop relying on them the way we used to. It becomes entirely our responsibility how we behave. We can choose to stick to the values taught by our parents or reject them and take a different path.

Once we are old enough to realize our environment and analyze it, we see the world differently and make our own decisions. We notice how not everything our parents told us when we were little is true, and it turns out that they are as human as anyone else, which means they can also be wrong. So we question their lessons, either because we do not want to make the same mistakes they did, we feel the need to be original, to learn something new, the desire of experimenting, etc.

Sometimes this leads not only to know that nothing is black or white, but to distinguish a range of colors in between. This makes us lose the sharpness of the line drawn between good and evil. And what is wrong is presented now to us not only in the form of temptation, but also masqueraded as a “right thing ” for us to be able to justify ourselves doing something wrong.

Uncovered evil

We are all born innocent. At the beginning of our lives, we are little “sponges” ready to absorb all the knowledge and experience to our step. Unfortunately, some of that knowledge is the evil that eclipses the light in the world and in people. We obtain non grata memories of experiences that contribute to building up bad memories, and not a very good view of the world in which we live. We begin to feel anger, sadness, anger, loneliness, bitterness, frustration. We realize that the kind of justice that evil actions deserve is not the kind of justice that is obtained in a world so corrupt as the one in which we live.

We get disappointed and then we lose hope. Perhaps not immediately. Maybe our first impulse is trying to save the whole world from decadence, but there comes the unavoidable moment when we must accept that the burden is too much for one person. So we have two main options: see the good in the world, keep on hoping and try to do all good we can as we move forward, or get ourselves corrupted and give in to the evil of the world.

Decisions

We all have those thoughts that represent the voices of our desires, temptations, and we also have the consciousness that we know will make us very hard to be in peace when we do something we don’t think it’s right. It’s our decision which one we listen to and which one we ignore.

Whether we take the right path or the opposite, it will be our responsibility. In any case, if we choose to do the right thing or not, we will be the ones dealing with the consequences.

In conclusion

This world we live in is far from perfect. It leaves us very good teachings, but also some not so good. It’s our decision appropriating them and set them aside. In these times it is difficult to define precisely what is right and what is wrong. But if we’re truly willing, we can get close enough to see clearly the difference between the two of them.

Let’s reflect on the words above in order to move with greater awareness in life. Be careful. Follow your own moral and ethical code, the rules of society with which we coexist daily, and that way we will be more at peace with everyone and ourselves. And remember that basically, if what you do hurts you or someone else, this can’t be right.