Cortisol — released by the adrenal glands during the stress response; stimulates the amygdala and inhibits the hippocampus. - Rick Hanson

The wolf of love sees a vast horizon, with all beings included in the circle of “us.” That circle shrinks down for the wolf of hate, so that only the nation, or tribe, or friends and family — or, in the extreme, only the individual self — is held as “us,” surrounded by threatening masses of “them.

It helps to remember that kindness is its own reward, that consequences often come to others without you needing to bring justice to them yourself, and that you can be assertive without falling into ill will.

Even if you, like me, have done things worthy of remorse, they do not wipe out your good qualities; you are still a fundamentally good person.