More Life Lessons 101 with Teacher Katie: complaints

Keep your big mouth shut...have you ever heard this saying?

 

You don't go very long in the pediatric cancer world before you find someone who has it worse than you--often a lot worse. Though someone whose child has cancer has a lot worth griping about, that doesn't mean they should do it. This is something I've had to remind myself of often, because it's so easy for me to fall into the complaint mode! The fact is, we ALL have something worth griping about. Though my child doesn't have cancer anymore, she does have side effects. Sometimes she has to go to physical therapy, sometimes other therapies, and that means taking her to appointments. I have a life outside of her illness, so these appointments are inconvenient. I have to remind myself that I don't care if they are inconvenient. I want what is best for her, so I do it. Period.

You may not have a child with cancer, but surely you are busy. We all are. You have your own storms: they may be physical, mental, or emotional. We all have problems, and I'd bet we can all agree that all of them suck.

I grew up with a saying (that is likely and hopefully untrue, but still) that says, "90% of the people you tell your troubles to, don't care. The other 10% are glad you've got them." While I don't think EVERYONE is that callous, I do think there is a lesson to learn from the saying. While your problems are most important to you, my problems are most important to me. So the next time I feel like complaining, I'm going to take my own advice and keep my big mouth shut! Do you ever feel like complaining (I know the answer to that!)? How do you deal?