I like to use big words because it makes me feel like photosynthesis.
~ plagiarized from an airport gift shop in an undisclosed location
When our orderly and perfect world is anything but, our tendency is to believe the lies, those sweet little lies, that we tell our ourselves. The message is daunting and the delivery is ubiquitous — We don’t measure up. Are you ready to fight back and take the clutter of their message for what it is, nonsense; a poorly disguised attempt to shape how you see yourself and your worldview?
stuck
Meet Phil; he wants something and someone that are out of reach. The person that is the subject of his affection has no interest in him. He is stuck; he has to filter out his own nonsensical ideas that are proven to be offensive, ineffective or harmful. Through everyday interactions, he learns what it means to invest himself in the lives of those around him and accept the unfamiliar, a small sliver of the truth, or remain trapped. As the storyline progresses, Phil moves forward, one tick at a time, on a continuum that will transform him from ignorance to apathy and from ambivalence to indifference. Along the way, he learns something about himself, his motives and ultimately his character.
ignorant
We don’t know what we don’t know, and we don’t care about what we don’t know anything about. We dismiss our harsh words under the pretense that, either “We don’t understand” or “We don’t care.” On occasion, we will utter complete nonsense, and with righteous indignation criticize the temperament of those we hurt, encouraging them to toughen up.
apathetic
Then there are those times, we play the victim card, and expect that our circumstances are worse than those that others have to endure. We presume that because what others are experiencing may not be visible or palpable, theirs must be minuscule or manageable. It is our apathy that spawns brilliant statements such as “I feel your pain” or “Call me if you need me.”
tick, tick
Phil eventually learns that it is he that must change if he expects to get what he wants. His motives are no more pure or more sincere than when he started, but utilitarianism drives him to learn how to play the game. Phil still struggles, and in many respects, doesn’t get it, but sees his prize getting closer thinking she is warming to him. In reality, it is he that is changing and evolving.
ambivalent
It’s far better to question whether our actions hurt those that we care about than to be sure that they wouldn’t but be dead wrong. A few weeks ago, I posted birthday greetings to my that father that was very painful for my lovely wife to read. I wrote it thinking it was bright and witty even though, at the time, I was discouraged, and I was beginning to feel that I was losing ground. She saw through my thinly veiled sarcasm and could only see what remained; a raw nerve that was dark and bitter.
There is a difference between sympathy and compassion, between assistance and neediness. It was ego, an unhealthy pride, nurtured and matured while attending the school of hard knocks that put a swagger in my step, and an edge to my words that fostered an attitude of indifference to the needs of anyone traveling through my orbit. Now the pride that keeps me on my feet must battle a disease that wants to push me back on my knees. Strangely, my disease isn’t impressed with what I have done; it’s more interested in preparing me for what I have yet to accomplish.
a gopher’s tale
Phil’s story has a predictable ending. Yes, he gets the girl. Guess what Phil, I got the girl too. But my story, our story, is much more complicated than chasing a rodent through podunk Pennsylvania and it has more twists and turns than the back roads of Punxsutawney. Our story will make some laugh, it may make some cry, but best of all, the ending is yet to be written — and you can be a part of it.
Thanks for reading and liking, share it if you must,
Groundhogs are rodents Ivy; basically giant ground squirrels. Yes, they are like wolverines, only groundhogs are a lot tougher.
Al and his faithful, but zoologically ignorant sidekick, Ivy the wonder pup.
What makes them tougher? Even the smallest squirrel knows how to handle a Buckeye.