Some days I've just had it with people. Rudeness abounds. There are days in which people drive me absolutely, certifiably crazy with their attitudes and behaviors. I can get up in the morning cheery as usual and have so many run ins with rude, mean, arrogant people that I'm ready to kick my dog when I get home or anyone else for that matter.
Having worked in retail while I was pursing grad school, I feel sorry for store clerks at Christmastime, especially the last few days before Christmas. The griping, the complaining, the arguing, the pressing, the rudeness of customers take their toll. It's hard to smile and say, "Have a nice day." What you really want to say is .... So I've decided I'm going to treat the cashier as a person and engage them in personal conversation about themselves and their duress. I try to relate to the pressure of their job and circumstance. Their response is usually amazing. Some people actually take a deep breath as if to relax.
Doing good come in a variety of forms. I try to make it a habit of thanking people for doing their jobs that are particularly monotonous or stressful or unpleasant or those who have to work weird hours or holidays. I just simply say, "Thanks for being here." "Thanks for doing what you're doing." I've found that by doing that even if I've been inconvenienced or treated discourteously not only does it brighten their day and ease our tension, it helps me maintain a positive spirit.
Here's the rub. It's hard for me to have a "doing good to others" attitude all the time. I can be demanding, critical, or arrogant myself. Something doesn't meet my standards or go my way, well let's just say I can be very expressive or demonstrative. There are times when I know that I'm being played, taken advantage of, or used. I don't feel like being, I mean, doing good at those moments. I can be very vociferous in defending an idea or a principle.
Yet, here's what I know as a sufferer of hypertension, the more I engage in negative or antagonistic behavior, the higher my blood pressure rises. Doing good to others actually lowers my bp and benefits me. I'm not in a knot all the time and life is better for me.
God, I don't feel like doing good to others sometimes. I get frustrated and angry and agitated. Give me strength to not be weary in well doing.
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