I thought I was doing well with my month of discipline, and from a diet and ‘time with God’ perspective I have been. But today has been severely aggravating as I’ve spent over two hours collectively on the phone with Verizon technical support. My issue with my video service upgrade is still not resolved (even though we got to a point where we thought it was), and my frustration boiled over with the last tech support representative with whom I spoke.
Although I was not mean to that person, I was stern, the volume in my voice well above average, and my increasing loss of patience evident to the person on the other end of the line. The call ended – problem still not resolved, technician coming out on Tuesday – and my daughter called me out.
She called me out for letting the whole situation get to me. She called me out for not taking a breath and trying to relax through it all. She called me out for not handling the situation better (i.e. with more grace). Did I mention she’s only fifteen?
And she’s right. Through it all, not once did I think to slow down and pray. Not once did I remind myself it’s not the fault of the tech support rep that my video service isn’t working. All I could think of was the amount of money I pay per month for this t0 not be working, and how I was missing the Final Four. In that moment, I needed serenity, and I completely failed (and set a bad example in the process).
I came to my laptop to post my blog for tonight before heading out to the movies with the kids. The wallpaper on my laptop is this image from the TV show Firefly.
It’s funny that for as often as I see it, or for how intentional I try to be, it’s so easy to lose sight of that reminder; find your serenity.
Yet another lesson to be learned on my part.
Gil Gonzalez 