A Complaint Free World
Now, I know this is going to shock many of you but I was watching Oprah yesterday and I thought she had a really good idea. Well, actually, she featured a pastor from Missouri who had a really good idea. He and his church give out purple bracelets with "A Complaint Free World" on them. The little bracelets come with a challenge - go 21 days without complaining. Here are the rules:
1. Begin to wear the bracelet, on either wrist
2. When you catch yourself complaining, gossiping or criticizing move the bracelet to the other arm and begin again.
3. If you hear someone else who is wearing a bracelet complain, you may point out their need to switch the bracelet to the other arm; BUT if you’re going to do this, you must move your bracelet first!
4. Stay with it. It may take many months but when you reach 21 days you will find that your entire life is happier, more loving, more positive and more abundant.
So, I've decided to take Oprah and the good pastor up on the challenge. I don't have the pretty purple bracelet but I have one from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial I'm going to use. I figure what better inspiration to stop complaining.
I suppose this will affect my posts pretty dramatically as there will no longer be lists of rants about celebrities, people's fashion choices, or not being in Paris. ;) I'm also guessing this will affect my marriage because Nicholas thinks the challenge is stupid BUT has decided every time I ask him to do something I'm complaining and he should point that out to me. (Again, he can do this consequence free since he's not wearing a bracelet).
More importantly, I'm hoping this will affect my general disposition. I'm coming up on a pretty big transition in my life. During past transitions, I've had a tendency to get down on myself and slump into a "woe is me" phase. I'm hoping this little bracelet will help me focus instead on the thousands of blessings in my life and remember that, even in periods of uncertainty, I really don't have much to complain about.
8 comments:
I saw this episode as well and I thought, would it be complaining if I said that I hate the color purple?
Um...yep
I didn't see the episode, but how do you distinguish an opinion from a complaint? I think sometimes the lines might get a little blurry. Is any negative opinion necessarily a complaint? (i.e. the lecture I'm sitting in right now is boring-- justified opinion or complaint?)
Maybe I'm just thinking too much about it....
Saw it,love it, want to do it, but not until after april 15 when my portfoilo is out of my life forever. Other wise I might crackup and have to be sent to
2-north!!!(crazy house for non-paducahians)
You are totally not thinking about this too much b/c this has been my constant inner monologue all day. (See right now am I complaining about not knowing what's complaining or am I just observing?) Basically, I've decided what they really mean is no bitching but they can't say that b/c it's a church. So, if I'm just bitching to bitch then I'm switching the bracelet. If I'm describing or observing free of a bad attitude, then I think I'm good.
P.S. I've decided any variation of stressed out probably means I'm just bitching.
(sarcastically) SNORT. CHORTLE.
(venomously) I HATE THIS IDEA. IT'S STUPID. IT'S TOO HARD. PURPLE DOESN'T MATCH MY OUTFITS.
ed. note:
That's complaining.
(no, but seriously, a cool idea. let's make my mom wear one! it does, however, beg the question: does this prevent you from READING snarky celeb gossip pages?)
Nicholas is the cleverest one here. No wonder he became an attorney.
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