Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Life's little hassles

Weather.  Commutes.  Jobs.  Kids.

These are things I hear people complain about the most.  They may not complain about them all the time or with significant vehemence, but there they are.  Like the flour or the sugar or the milk or the eggs; these seem to be the staples that prevent folks from having a good day.

I think though, that when people look at their personal history of the weather, or their job, or their commute, or their kids; they find that the weather has not been all that bad, and their commute gives them time to think, and their jobs bring them satisfaction, and their kids are pretty great little people.

In the course of our lives, even though the negatives seem to stick, we need to remember that they don’t last.  We need to remember that there is good in those negatives.  We need to remember that those negatives don’t last either. 

In the end, they really aren’t that big a deal.

If you ever want to play an interesting game, try this.  For one week, write down all the things that you complain about.  After the week, put those complaints in an envelope.  Put that envelope away for two months (a tiny percentage of your life).  Open it again and see how many of those things matter.

Was it really worth complaining about them at all?

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