Thursday, August 16, 2012

Sharing joy with someone who doesn't want to hear it

Yesterday I got my new glasses. Earlier in the summer I had cataract surgery on both eyes. I had to wait until now to get the new glasses, because each eye needs about a month to stabilize after surgery. I was so excited and thankful, I couldn't wait to tell people what a blessing it was to be able to see well again. The first person I saw was a colleague at work who always looks on the dark, pessimistic side. Knowing that, I asked myself how long it will take him to change the subject to something miserable. As it happened, he plunged right into it! I shared my joy with him, then he immediately said, "I take it you were not here to experience what we experienced yesterday?"

"What do you mean," I asked.

Then he went on to tell me how long the lines were, how ineffective management was, and how intolerable the whole experience was.

"Actually," I said, "I was here yesterday. I had a really good day." I walked away as his attention was diverted to one of those dreadful customers.

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