Has it been a manic holiday season for you?
If you agree with the statement, was it a result of self-imposed stress? Did you put too much upon yourself, to do too much for others? Did you make the act of freely giving to others an anxiousness-inducing millstone? Did the intent upon selflessness become the worrisome burden that disallowed your enjoyment of the holiday?
Maybe none of these thoughts entered your mind. Possibly you just felt rushed, frantic, and a little pushed to get everything done by a deadline of the twenty-fifth.
We all feel pressed from time to time to meet deadlines. We feel this at work, at home, even occasionally in our leisurely pursuits. These phantom fingers, forcefully pressing upon our trapezius, propel us to act and accomplish in the face of deadlines and impending events.
It’s ok to feel these pressures. These feelings of necessitative action can motive and propel one to accomplish. Many people actually function aptly and competently under threat of a deadline.
My intention is not to highlight the fact that we all deal with stress and deadlines, but to spotlight the people thinking that throwing their time constraints upon others will result in better treatment, or some magical pathway to a previously unmentioned, and nonexistent expressway.
These self-indulgent people can be identified easily.
Observe the man in line at the grocery store, four customers behind you, who rushes to the register that just opened, as a result of backed up checkout.
Make note of the frenzied driver that passed you, glaring towards you through your passenger window, only to find the traffic flow has graced the left lane with more prodigious speed, rendering his prior maneuver completely pointless.
Or, maybe its the greatest offender, who chooses to vocalize their supposed necessity directly to you.
“Hi, I’m in a really big hurry, and so, you taking care of (whatever) for me will really help me get to something else.”
In my head, anyone who approaches in this matter should immediately receive the most deliberate, and carefully thought out consideration. And by that I suggest virtual non-acknowledgement of the request, or blatant misdirection.
When someone initiates a conversation with “I’m in a really big hurry…” I immediately shut down, and mentally render that person unimportant. Why should they assume that their concern is any greater than the countless others with the considerate demeanor to maintain courtesy? Does your statement of “I’m in a terrible rush…” mean that I must kowtow to your perceived need for expeditiousness?
If you slow down and deal with things patiently, maybe your overall stress level will diminish. Maybe taking your time will mean that you won’t have to force your rush upon others. Please don’t impose your failure to deal with your life in an timely manner on unrelated individuals. Not only is that irresponsible, but it is also aggravating. Additionally, impressing upon another the vacuous immediacy of your superfluous needs reveals a selfish, inconsiderate troglodyte, unfit for social acceptance.
Be decent to your fellow man.
Humbly yours,
J