Mere Christianity – C. S. Lewis (1952)
I think there is a huge difference between the pleasure derived from retribution that has caused another to suffer when their actions have been responsible for inflicting suffering on others and the pleasure derived from actively hating someone.
There seems to be some people that have so very little else of worth in their lives that they gain great pleasure in causing others to suffer, it often seems to become their only pleasure in life. As a home-carer for the elderly I was often subjected to the wroth of clients for whom I could do nothing right. They would spend their whole time finding fault from the minute I arrived (which was often a bone of contention because invariably I would either be late or too early regardless of the time I was due to get there).
I would find that if I was to make breakfast they would not want what was available, or the toast would not be the right colour, the tea to strong, weak, hot, cold, etc. The clothes they had chosen the night before with the night carer would no longer be suitable once morning arrived, I would not brush their hair the way they liked it and any domestic chores would naturally not be done to their satisfaction. The art of being a contrary as possible with everyone had become their life’s work.
It was rationalised as their loneliness, or frustrations as a result of no longer being able to do things for themselves anymore, or that they were suffering from depression, etc. and whilst all that may have played a part in it all I always think that the bottom line was that, regardless of the excuses made for them they were just one of life’s moaners and complainers. They had always taken great pleasure in making things difficult for other people and were never going to change.
On the other hand, there was a gentleman that was after many years of homecare to go into a residential unit. When asked if he was looking forward to going for a look around he simply said that he had made up his mind that it was all going to be marvellous and he had always been one for enjoying himself regardless of where life threw him.
Attitude is what you decide upon … if you go looking for pleasure you will be able to see it in a lot of things, but if you decide that nothing in your life is going to be worth anything then that is what you will find.