definitive statements are dumb

Yesterday I had one of those unfortunate reality slaps. One of the ‘oh, I’m an idiot’ moments. A group of us were driving back to base and I made one of my ridiculous blanket statements. Of course it lacked merit. Of course it lacked backing. Of course it represented only my opinion. Of course it was meant merely for effect. Of course no one called me on it.

The words hung in the air like the smell of burnt hair. Their putrescence apparently noticed only by their creator. Two seconds later, someone else in the SUV made a similar definitive statement. Mild in comparison to the type I fling around so loosely. His words sounded so cocky and ignorant; the statement so bland and casual in its damning of so many innocents.

It caught me off guard. I almost smiled, knowing I was caught. Worse, I caught myself. For no one else seemed to notice my hypocrisy. A more damning thought, people around me are callous to the fact.

This is my crime, my punishment, my penitence and my new beginning.