And Now for Something Totally Different: The Ghost of Curmudgeons Past

"Cheer up--things could always be worse!"

Isn't that the dumbest advice you've ever heard? It draws on your imagination to conjure up the most depraved of scenarios so that you might feel better about "what is." I know that. And yet, every once in awhile I find myself falling into that old pattern of thought.

In my line of work, we are routinely occasionally required to deal with the classic curmudgeon. (Can you tell that there have been a number of those lately?) Curmudgeon is such a good word. It even sounds so...well... curmudgeonly. Anyway, I happened to be in the office on my day off this week (first mistake), when I heard my boss setting up an appointment with "The Ghost of Curmudgeons Past." This individual had made my life miserable a year ago. She had an issue with our doctor, and since I just happened to be standing in the way, she took it out on me. She and her husband made a scene, pitched a fit, called me names and totally denigrated me to my district manager who happened to be in the office that day. He, in typical middle management mode, schmoozed them, rewarding them for behaving badly. I still get worked up just thinking about it.

Breathe...let it go...breathe in...breathe out.

Anyhow, flash forward eighteen months, and here was my boss, setting up an appointment with Lady MacBeth. I was outraged! Surely she would come back and make my life miserable once again!

And then...after several hours of personal turmoil...my inner Christ whispered to me. Have you forgotten who you are?

Almost instantly I was relieved. I realized that I was letting my false sense of ego define who I was. When I let go of ego, I could make a choice. Did I want to be a victim to another of God's children? Or did I want to be a willing servant to her? Sounds a bit the same, doesn't it? It's a subtle distinction. But oh, the difference.

The irony is that I'd bolstered myself to be the most humble, gracious individual the Ghost of Curmudgeons Past had ever encountered. And...she cancelled.

Perhaps the Universe just sent the student a practical exam. I like to think that I passed, at least this time.