3 Things To Think About When Dumb Stuff Happens

I’ve been struggling with something this whole week and while I’ve grown a lot over the last 35 years, I’ve come to the conclusion that I still have some room to grow. 

First off, I nearly got into an argument with a guy after a training dive at the Blue Heron Bridge.  I was sitting there with my two students & out of the blue he came up & said several things that were meant to provoke me. 

Then on Wednesday, I tried my best to get into an argument about some stuff that really does not matter following a Bible study.  Maybe if it had something to do with the Bible, I might have been justified but it was just plain dumb.  I can indeed be my own worst enemy sometimes. 

Then just this morning, I was tooling my way to work on the bike; enjoying my day & almost got plowed over by a lady in an SUV who had the audacity to cuss me out when I blew the horn to let her know I was there.  While I am sure there are many lessons for me in this, 3 things are now more abundantly clear than ever. 

1.  Avoid An Argument When You Can.  Avoiding an argument takes great will power but nearly always ends in the right way.  What I mean is that I walked away from the guy at the park & felt better about it afterward.  In my younger years, I might have been more willing to stand my ground. 

2.  Watch Out For The Ego.   I have to be careful when it is clear that others around me are baiting me into something.  My competitive juices get flowing & my inclination is to fight back.  I know I look stupid when I do those things like this.  Learn to walk away mentally as well.  My dad always said it was better keep your mouth shut & appear to be a fool than to speak & remove all doubt.  I think I should listen to his voice more often.

3.  Be Always On Guard Against The Actions of Others.  When I first learned to ride the bike, I was told again and again to always drive as if no one could see me.  As I get older that advice seems to be good for a lot of things.  Servers at restaurants often get side tracked and miss things.  Customer service is as Clark Howard calls it, “Customer No Service”.  What that means is that for many, my very presence is hidden and therefore I have to be more willing to tolerate the bad behavior of others.  That doesn’t mean I’m going to let people walk on me.  It does mean I have to try to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Now I'm ready to get back to the more pleasant stuff of life.  One of the most important is to remind myself that my grandson Noah will join us shortly & I am more excited than ever.  

That my friend is for another blog.