Day 10

Day 10: Real time
Day 2: 21-day Complaint Free Journey

I’ve always believed in pre-emptive strikes. Or as cowboys used to say, “Headin’ em off at the pass.”

In more modern, less militaristic terms, I deal with many problems from a proactive stance.

In other words, I’m a bit of a control freak.

In listening to Will Bowen read his book again, I picked up this time on how many families find themselves sitting in silence as they proceed through the 21-day attempt to be complaint free. They discovered that, unless they were complaining, they had nothing to say to one another.

I was beginning to think it was me. In my earlier life, I was a quiet person who didn’t feel comfortable speaking my mind. I got over that around age 35 and often remark that I haven’t stopped talking since then.

So, for me to purposely refrain from talking is rather disconcerting. But that is what I’ve found myself doing as I take this journey. Something will be about ready to pop out and then I pull it back when I realize it is a complaint of some kind…..and there are many kinds, aren’t there?

We will bury my father today. Such an occasion might lend itself to negativity to those who are inclined to complain, as I have been lately.

I vow this morning to strike any complaints from my comments BEFORE I verbalize them; I'll head 'em off at the pass as I attempt to be proactive in my journey to 21 days of being complaint free.

I will try to move through this day with grace and dignity as we honor a man who lived the same way. I will control my negativity as an homage to him and to the fact that we really don’t have much to complain about when we put it all in perspective.