SERENITY NOW!

Did you ever see the episode of Seinfeld where George's father tries to manage his anger by yelling "SERENITY NOW!" whenever he gets ticked off?

Well, I am mad right now, so I tried this technique.

It didn't work.

I am still mad.

I took deep breaths. I counted to ten. I visualized a peaceful valley: A sunny place, with wild flowers growing and birds chirping. It was nice until a tornado swept through my peaceful valley and ravaged the place. Hmmmm. Wonder where that came from.

Yep. Still mad.

I don't get mad very often. I am fairly mild tempered. Why the sudden tempest in my soul?

I am mad because a certain person with whom I live and to whom I am married (who shall remain nameless) made a mistake. A teeny tiny mistake. A minor oversight, really, that carried no evil intent and caused no pain. A mistake that will cost us nothing. Well, nothing except money.

And of all the currencies in life, money is the least valuable. Some mistakes cost hours of our time, others cost us physical suffering, or worst of all entire relationships. No, in the whole scheme of things, an expensive mistake is the best kind to make. Money is replaceable. Other things...not so much.

I make mistakes all of the time, many of which cost money, and never once has David gotten angry at me about them. He was slightly annoyed when I accidentally bid $2100.00 on a lego set on e-bay. Annoyed, but not mad.

He is, by far, a better person than I.

Funny. I'm not feeling quite so angry anyomore. In fact, I feel a little foolish for my fit. Silly me. Serenity now.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret--it leads only to evil. Psalm 37:8

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