Tess Taylor is the author of the poetry collections "Work & Days" and "The Forage House." The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers.

(CNN) This winter, just after I'd written an op-ed for CNN about gun violence, I received a bunch of notes, mostly lovely ones, in my inbox. Some were unpleasant, and among them two really stood out to me -- one threatened my life, while another truly charming correspondent wrote: "Women like you should just shut up. We were great at enforcing the Second Amendment before you all had the right to vote."

Let's pause for a moment, noting that thankfully we live in a world where women (after centuries of violent and forceful silencing) are allowed not only to vote but also to speak in public -- who are even now finding the greater power of their voices. Let's also pause to remember that, unfortunately, there are always a few upset people in the world, people who may not be capable of expressing themselves in appropriate ways.

Tess Taylor

What struck me most was imagining the anger, and the fury, of whatever individual strangers had taken the time to compose such a screed and press send to direct it toward me, another human being. Even though that anger was both wildly misdirected and inappropriate, it seemed all too familiar. In fact, it felt nearly normal. I was hardly even surprised by it.

We've lived through an anger-inducing year, where many of us have found ourselves screaming and cursing at the screens in front of us, feeling embattled -- furious at others nearby us, furious at others far away. We live in an era of outrage.

The outrage may in many cases be justified, but it's painful to carry, too. I hear each day about the kinds of pain it causes. In one day alone, I recently had two or three separate conversations with or about people who have left social media because of the sheer ugliness of disagreeing with relatives; the ways they feel cut off from friends or family at home because they cannot, at this inflamed moment, see eye to eye about anything.

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