It’s All About Me…

Or..How to know when to get over yourself..

 

I lost my dog. Willy came up missing a few days ago and I thought I would lose my mind. I was worried and sad and hurt and mad and almost every emotion that is negative to the mind, body and soul. I received sympathy, empathy, and understanding along with help searching for him and was overwhelmed with friends and family assuring me that he would return. Instead of being grateful for that support, I just continued to cry and mourn the loss of my precious Willy (aka Prince William future King of England).

What can I say? I was wallowing in self-pity and despair and made up my mind I deserved to be there as long as I wanted. And then something happened. The real world spinning round and round with not even the least bit of concern for my plight brought a new day, and I was appalled. Skeeter Davis said it best: “Don’t they know it’s the end of the world?”

Of course I have felt pain much worse than this. The loss of my brothers, Mama Bess, Daddy Frank, precious friends and family, and each time I ask the same question. Why? Why do bad things have to happen?  Why are good people or good pets taken away from us? Why do we have to hurt?

Let’s face it. I am a professional pity party planner. I could make millions telling people how to feel sorry for themselves. I have perfected the, “I am the only person in the whole wide world who has ever experienced this particular pain” scenario. I think being selfish is innate. I think we are born with that particular capability and some choose to nurture it and watch it grow and some are smart and realize the harm it causes them and others.  I am a late bloomer, always have been. It takes me a little while to let powerful lessons sink in to my stubborn skull.  But after a few days of listening to some stories that would make a grown man weep, I understood that it really isn’t all about me. As a matter of fact, it is not about me at all. 

Some people have never experienced the kind of unconditional love and acceptance I have been blessed with from parents, siblings, friends and even my little scruffy dog.  While I mourn a loss, they pray to have that experience just once in their lives. Maybe it really is better to have been loved and lost it… than to have never been loved at all. Maybe that is what Jesus was talking about in Matthew 16 when He said,  …”deny thyself and follow me”. I don’t think he was saying we should not “love ourselves” but he knew that when we are thinking selfishly, acting selfishly, we are actually denying our most precious gift:  loving others.  There is not a whole lot of energy and love left for others if all we love is “ME”.

Nobody loves shopping more than this old gal. LOVE IT. Love to buy new things to wear or for the house, but that joy is so short lived compared to what I feel when I buy something and give it to someone else. The world is so full of the “Me Message” right now.  Self-esteem, love yourself, etc. and we should love ourselves. We are made in God’s image. When we hate the way we look or anything about ourselves, we are basically thumbing our noses at God and saying, “You screwed up, look at me, what a horrible mess you made!” The reason we should love and accept ourselves for who we are is so we can STOP working on ourselves and start doing more important things. Like maybe encouraging others to be their best. 

If I may quote one of the greatest song writers of all times, John Lennon, “Imagine all the people… living for today.” Imagine if for just one day, I didn’t let ‘me’ cross my mind or you didn’t let ‘you’ cross your mind. What would that be like? If we just took 24 hours of not being ‘me centered” If we just got over ourselves for a day.  Well, they would probably call us ‘dreamers’ just like John. But I think I need to at least give it a try. I don’t think one whole day of putting ME on the back burner will completely ruin my chances of being Queen in the future.  There is plenty of time for me to turn the phrase, “Let them eat (chocolate) cake” into a good thing.

And it is okay for me to miss Willy and to share that pain and burden with family and friends and be thankful I have them to help me through it. As long as I don't put up a tent in "Me Camp".

Squirrely Girl out~ Have a great and nutty day!