Rosy Glow – Complaining

By

Bob LaTorre

 

I thought I would reach back about 35 years and post one of Cousin Bob’s original Rosy Glow columns. Even over time I am sure you all can relate to it. Enjoy!

 

I suppose that sooner or later I must learn to accept the fact that, to complain is within the realm of human nature. A look back at life indicates that given any special circumstances, people will complain.

Take food for example. If food is institutionalized, all will complain. I can clearly remember this happening: at summer camp, in high school, in college and in the military. I have in fact never been in any group environment where people did not complain about the quality of food.

The same goes for landlords: the person to whom we pay rent is a villain simply because he is the person to whom we pay rent. It makes no difference what kind of person the property is, we will complain simply because they are the landlord.

The weather is another whipping boy. People will complain about the weather. No matter what the season, conversations will invariably start with a complaint about it being too hot, too cold, too dry too humid and when all else fails, we complain about it being too much of the same.

This propensity to complain is surely one factor in our current basic satisfaction with the state of the world. We as Americans are the best fed, best housed, best dressed, best entertained most secure people in the world. Yet to read the newspaper, look at the television, or listen to radio talk shows, one must conclude that we live the worst existence of the planet.

Picture if you will, some other world creature that was able to tune in on just the audio portion of all our broadcasts. Our ET, listening from his home in outer space hearing only broadcasts from the USA would probably feel compelled to launch a rescue mission to this distant planet to save us from ourselves.

It may be that it is just our complaint mode at work or it could be that combined with our overwhelming sense of guilt about all that we have which prompts us to be so critical of our current state of being. But in any case we do complain.

We find fault with our food, our air, our water, our cars, our standard of living, and just about everything else in our world.

 

 

 

Meanwhile we remain the envy of the world. There are a few if any nations on earth where there are not people who wish to come here and live, Not everyone in every country but some people in all countries. In some instances people have died in their attempts to get to this country. Stop any immigrant you know and ask if they would want to return to their native land? Ninety-nine percent will say no.

Yet we continue to complain and worry, What is more, those of us who do not complain are ridiculed. People who have made a lot of money and seem to be enjoying their wealth are held up to scorn. They are depicted as greedy. In fact the past ten years which have increased our standard of living dramatically, are now referred to as the greed years.

I will admit that I had some meals in college, and in the Navy. There have been landlords I hated, there may even be a few things I would like to see changed right now, BUT I do not know of a time in history, of a place on earth where I would rather be than where I am right now.

I have had a bigger income and a smaller one and like everyone else I would like more money, but day in and day out I still awake each morning and face life with a great deal of gratitude and satisfaction.

Most days I even find myself filled with, you guessed it a ……Rosy Glow.