A kind friend sent me a comic strip from the series “Pearls Before Swine,” by Stephan Pastis. We see a goat and a rat sitting at a bar, drinking—I know, who hasn’t seen that?
The rat says, “Every single relationship I have with anyone else in my life ends in bitterness, anger, and resentment. Every single one, and when that happens, a guy has to say to himself, ‘It’s gotta be me, right?’”
“Right,” says the goat.
“Wrong,” says the rat. “It’s all the idiots around me. Here’s hoping the rest of the world pulls its head out of its @#@.”
“And for a second,” says the goat, “I thought we were having a moment of growth.”
We can’t help but smile at this interchange, but most of us live according to the beliefs of the rat. Many times every day we express our displeasure at how some other person has caused our fears, disappointment, or anger. It’s never true, and as long as we wait for “all the idiots” around us to change, happiness will remain forever elusive.
Replace your anger and confusion with peace and happiness.
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