Sometimes we are at one with our fellows in brotherly love and peace.
Brenda P
Sometimes in the unity of traffic, profanity and ire.
I was down to one Dove’s chocolate yesterday morning so I made a run to the grocery store. I drove east on Prospect where construction had traffic down to one lane in two locations in that one mile stretch. Crazy drivers were speeding and trying to cut in front of other people. Angrily I began to call them names, which did not make me feel any better nor could they hear me. Once I got to the grocery store, I could not make the self checkout thingy work for me. The anger I was still holding on to when I walked into the store now included frustration. After finally getting checked out I took Drake westbound home to avoid the construction on Prospect. But…. they had construction on Drake down to one lane near Shields. Now I’m angry, frustrated and spewing profanity all over the dashboard of my car and totally away of my behavior. I turned north on Shields only to discover they had traffic down to one lane near Prospect due to construction. So in that four mile square trip to the grocery store I had one lane traffic in four places due to construction. And the construction was really nothing more than a cable company burying cable. Oh, the measures we go to for chocolate! Gladly, no one got hurt and I got my chocolate fix.
I put myself in timeout when I got home (20 minutes of meditation time) and calmed down. I reflected on my childish reactions to my first world problems and how insignificant they are compared to other world problems. I laughed at my silliness and went to a place of gratitude for the life I live, began to be excessively gentle with myself and aware of the growth that I still need in moving away from my self-centeredness. Thanks for listening. I hope you’re having a wonderful day!
Oh, and the quote is from a text message with my friend Brenda after she heard about my experience and rather childish behavior. I think it fits perfectly with my story.
