Still with the theme of passion these days. It's been on my mind a lot. I consider the first post a summation of a few things I'm passionate for - this is a few thoughts about things I'm passionate against.
Not Listening
This one is a doozy. I don't know if it's a because I'm a strong introvert or if this is just an innate part of my personality, but I hate when people do not listen to me - or do not listen in general. A couple of you reading this know that I can blabber on with the best of them, but that is only because we are close. I would venture to say that 95% of the people in my life think I'm fairly quiet - and also that at least that same percentage talks over me every time I open my mouth. They like me - some of them love me - but they can't shut up. And therefore they don't really know me. And they don't know that they don't know me.
I'm not a subservient person; I know how to get my point across and to be heard. It's just that I'm not willing to compete with the noise. At the end of the day, I know I can communicate what I need to, to whom I need to, and the rest is just static. It is humorous, though, to watch a bunch of people strain to talk over one another about inane topics. Veins start to show, the pitch of voices starts to rise...and the topic is American Idol. Really?
I had a close, very talkative friend once. Over the years, we drifted apart but I was the only one who realized it because, well, she did all the talking. And talking. And talking. One night, about an hour into talking my ear off, she goes, "So, what's going on with you?" and I mentioned a couple of things. The silence on her end was, let's just say, uncharacteristic. I asked if she was still there. Hello? Helloooo? And all I could hear was her steady breathing. She had fallen asleep. And that was that.
Mocking the underdog
It is a shallow and thoughtless person who thinks it is funny to mock someone in dire circumstances.
When I was little, maybe 4 or 5 years old, one of the neighborhood kids had a heart condition. He could do everything, physically, just like the rest of us, but he would get winded pretty easily. All the neighborhood kids were playing a game of baseball and they made fun of him so badly that I grabbed the bat and started beating an older kid with it. They let him play.
I'm not sure what it is - people can get away with saying almost anything to me. Almost. But I have such a short threshold when it comes to witnessing cruelty and thoughtlessness toward others. It's probably a real blessing that I don't have kids.
Close-Mindedness, Uncritical Thinking, Thoughtlessness, Limited Perspective
Well, obviously, right?
And of course, these people tend to fall under the first category of talking all the time.
False Guilt
I am the first to tell you that I did not get to where I am today (in any sense) on my own. Not that I think I'm in a particularly lofty position, I'm just saying, in general. It was part blessing, part luck, part sound decision making, and part miracle. I have a good husband and great friends and a sound job and, thank God, my health. I take credit for parts of it, but God gets the credit for all of it. Also, I view other peoples' lives through this lens. It eliminates a lot of jealousy. Not all jealousy, though (unfortunately!).
I cannot abide being in a conversation and someone saying, "Well, I mean, your marriage is perfect, so you wouldn't understand." Or, "You're going to London? I thought you were going to Africa this year! WOW. THAT must be nice. Geez..." You know how they say it's not what you say but how you say it? I think, no, it's both.
To the extent that I do not take full credit for the blessings in my life, I'm not going to feel guilty and awful about them either. There have been times that I have secretly begrudged others for the good things they had, or for the bad things they didn't. It does not surprise me that people would form misguided opinions and perceptions of my life, and that they would voice those opinions so blatantly. But just because they think something doesn't mean they're right. And it doesn't mean I have to listen to it. And it doesn't mean that I will lend any credibility to their thinking. Beth Moore once said (in who knows what Bible study series) that when God gives you a gift, you take it. Amen.
Proud to be so difficult
OMG, do you know anyone like this? A person who is so sure that they are right, that they just put it all out there and beg to be challenged? I'm like, really? There is someone I work with (isn't there always?) who takes pride in being so difficult that most people will bypass them rather than deal with them directly. This person says things like, "They know better than to deal with me!" And I think to myself, what does that say about you, as a person? I don't even know how to deconstruct that thought pattern...at all. Does it mean they are insecure? Or that their ego is hyper-inflated? All I can do is hope that people don't view me that way. I hope people don't find out that they have to work with me and start immediately looking for a way out.
Why do I feel like I should step down off my soapbox now? I don't mean to be negative...just...passionate. And for someone who just harshly criticized talkers, I realize there are a lotta words in this post! Ha!
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