Do you ever just get angry? Not the screaming kind, but the one that rests in your stomach as warm as a little candle light as you go about your day? Many people have always told me that anger isn't good for you. You have to be kind to everyone and you have to forgive because it makes you a better and stronger person. I used to agree with that.

Nowadays? I disagree. There are two kinds of anger you can have. The first one is screaming one. The stereotypical one you see on television, the one people usually think of when someone says 'anger' or 'mad'.

The second one is…quieter. Sharper. It's the kind that you might feel over a buildup of nonsense and unnecessary drama. It's the one that makes you grind your teeth and close your fists before you step forward. That anger is good. That kind of anger, if you can channel it, can be productive. That anger is better to have than sadness. Pro-longed sadness makes you idle in that your pain is overloading your ability to function.

Anger, on the other hand, is good. That anger makes you productive. That anger inspires you. That anger makes you want to do things, makes want to prove whoever has wronged you that you are capable, you are strong, and you don't care about their approval.

I know people say that too much anger (and hatred for that matter) makes you bitter, makes you unhappy in the long run. I disagree with that. If we always forgave and let go of anger, we wouldn't be here right now. Without anger, the American colonies would have never broken away from the British Empire for 'taxation without representation'. Without anger, the abolition movement would have never started and we wouldn't have had heroes like Harriet Tubman or Frederick Douglas who were furious over the institution of slavery and the inhumane treatment of their people. Even Martin Luther King Jr. was angry. Yes, he had said "Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." BUT, I never said that hatred and anger were the same thing. You can love and still be angry. Dr. King Jr. was angry, not because he hated white people, but because he loved his country, his people enough to believe that it can be better.

So now tell me. What are you angry about? Is it the gun violence running rampant throughout our country? Is it the nomination and confirmation of Kavanugh to the Supreme Court? Is it the police shooting at black people for no reason? Or is it more personal? Is it a friend who's been treating you like shit for the longest time? Is it a nice guy who tries to come in and out of your life when it's convenient for them alone? Is it a significant other cheating on you?

No matter what the reason is, for the time being, hold onto the anger. Don't hate the other person, but keep that anger. It's going to help you. That anger tells you that you can do better and you deserve better. And one day, when you let it go, you'll realize, it's what you needed to find happiness.