Between the Lines by Bruce Green
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Some weeks are better when they are over
“Life has its sunshine and its rain, sir . . . its days and its nights . . . its peaks and its valleys . . .” –Marcie (from Peanuts)
It has been one of those weeks – the kind that can’t even be made better with biscuits and gravy. The kind that only gets better by being over.
I don’t have many weeks like that. I am a pretty even-tempered guy, so most of the days and weeks seem the same to me. Whether on the peaks or in the valleys, I pretty much appear the same.
I think it might be because I have the kind of flatline personality that only a mother or a wife could love – according to my wife.
But guys with personalities like Dick Cheney have bad weeks and need love too. And the week now mercifully in my rearview mirror was one of those weeks.
It all started when I didn’t win the lottery. As if that wasn’t bad enough, I began waking up at 1:30 a.m. with work on my mind.
I like my work, but I don’t want it to wake me up in the morning. I have arthritis for that.
I had to make some hard decisions at the office this week and, while years of living in reality has made me good at that, being human still makes such decisions painful. I told my wife I felt like I had been stepping on puppies all week.
And then there were the family illnesses and crises that kept popping up in the midst of economic downturn, social unrest and my constant concern for the opinions of professional athletes in the news.
I remember reading that a former flight attendant said you have a better shot at living through a plane crash if you “don’t panic.”
I am not sure how much comfort I will take in that advice if I ever find myself in an airplane plummeting toward earth, but I think it is good advice about going through a bad week.
Don’t panic. Life has its sunshine and its rain . . . its days and its nights . . . its peaks and its valleys.
Life isn’t necessarily better on peaks. Lightning frequently strikes there. If there were no rain, nights or valleys, we wouldn’t be living in reality. We’d be living in Austin.
This past week I had occasion to think that living through a bad week is a lot like living a good life. There are only a handful of things that we need to remember.
We are not our own.
We can’t always be fair, but we must always be just.
Be consistent and gracious in speech, quick to hear and deliberate in answering.
Take note of the difference between your table companions and your friends.
Do your duty. Never do anything to advance yourself or your own agenda.
Don’t worry; things can always get worse, and they likely will.
Never be afraid.
It’s good to go home tired and always go home happy.
It’s been a tough week but it’s over and I’ve seen worse. I’ll probably see worse again. If I don’t, I’ll be thankful, and if I do I’ll focus on going home happy.
This world is a great place; it’s just wounded, and it takes our full attention to live well in it.
I may have the flatline personality of Dick Cheney, but I have the common-sense philosophy of Charlie Brown. “Life is like an ice cream cone . . . you have to learn to lick it!” Email Green at bgreen@lknewsgroup.com.
© 2020 Bruce W. Green
