Yes, watching the news has become a habit-but I try to keep it to a half an hour and some glimpses at the weather from time to time. But when I went on a month-long escape this winter, I left the news behind-and I can’t tell you how much better I felt. It’s not that I don’t think it’s important to stay informed and involved- I surely do. I just think that the news would better serve all people if it reflected more realistically the world that we live in and the statistical truth of what is actual, rather than a constant barrage of ‘your hair is on fire’ and the world is falling apart. Though some portions of the world do seem to be.

There are televisions in homes that rarely take a break from the political nightmare at bay. Storms are pummeling the Midwest; predictions of disaster and every dilemma and catastrophe are unfolding before our eyes. It is no secret that our culture has a fascination with true crime by the sheer number of shows, series, books and video games dedicated to violence and murder.

At Thanksgiving we’re warned about a turkey shortage, at Christmas, a Christmas tree shortage. On long weekends, ‘dangerous storms threatening millions of Americans’ and ‘record-breaking traffic in the air and on the highways.’ We are surrounded by the images and accounts that generate fear and anxiety. And for many that fear and anxiety seeps into our daily lives and becomes how we perceive the world at large.

There are reported to be an average number of 97,439 safe commercial flights per day-every day-every year-but we repeatedly, for days on end, hear about the one, single flight- that lost an emergency slide while flying to LA. Can we please hear more about the nearly 100,000 flights and the 12.5 million passengers who have had wonderful flights and land safely each day? Let’s learn more about the amazing places they visit and the wonderful memories they’ve made.

The New York City subway has a daily ridership of approximately 3.2 million people - people heading to work and school and wonderful Broadway shows and restaurants and the zoo and games at the Garden. They are travelling safely and enjoying one of the most amazing cities in the world- and yet on the news we are tormented by each single crime and misstep which is repeated continually to promote trepidation among all viewers. We rarely hear about the other 3.199999999 million riders who depend on and are transported safely on the subway each day. Not one report on their adventures in beautiful Central Park or the wonderful concerts in Lincoln Center. We are plugged into a system that promotes fear and forgets to share joy.

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, there is that last segment on the news that celebrates a do-gooder-that thirty seconds to satiate our fear and remind us that even though the last 29 minutes of the news were filled with terror- there’s still nearly a minute of goodness in the world.

Believe me, each life is highly valued. No one wants to see people hurt. We are grateful for the many opportunities we are given to prepare for storms and warned of dangerous situations. Our hearts go out to those who are injured, to those who have died, to those who face hardship. We do need information to make informed decisions. We are given significant fodder for prayer and contributions. Yet, I believe our lives would be so much richer and more peaceful if our diet included a healthier balance of life’s beauty and less of its fear. It’s not that we will forget the wars, the conflict, the pain and suffering that our fellow humans are forced to endure- it just perhaps will give us an opportunity to let more of the beauty of life in.

In the News