Putting it on a shelf and taking the upper road.

For my entire life I have been told to take things that bother me and put them in a jar and on the shelf....not to be dealt with later, but to ignore and then to "take the upper road" by "doing the right thing" in non-response.  But has anyone ever wondered what happens when the shelf is full, or the things on them are too heavy and the shelves crumble?  A person really can only handle so much, and there is only so much room to build shelves and only so much room on those shelves and when they are full, if you try to add more everything comes tumbling down at once.  Welcome to my life.  For me, I tend to have shelves for each person or situation I am dealing with....one for school and work, one for David, friends, and shelves for members of my family....sometimes they overlap when space is limited, but I really do try to keep them separate.  My biggest problem lies when I am trying to shelve crap from one person and haven't noticed that their shelf is full so....snap....the shelf breaks and it all comes crashing down.  Sometimes they think that I am crashing over the last little thing I am trying to shelf...that couldn't be farther from the truth, it is the accumulation of everything.

And so when a conflict does arise, and I feel threatened, hurt, betrayed, and angry I am supposed to take the upper road, and not my version of the upper road, the version someone else thinks is right.  Well honestly, who can tell me what is the "upper road" thing to do when they haven't been in my shoes?  How can someone say that it isn't the upper road to do what I can to protect myself and my family?  It has been called "retaliation" and "sinking down to their level" and frankly I don't get it.  People's actions have consequences and sometimes they hurt people they weren't intending to while hurting the people they were trying too....don't blame the target for the fallout is all I can say.

My shelf broke this week when I tried to add something tiny to it and the person that has always tried their best to hurt me, hurt those that helped her in the process and is blaming me for it....since natural consequences of their actions occurred I am accused of not taking the high road....really?  Maybe those people shouldn't have misused their positions thinking they would be safe....play with fire get burned end of story.