This morning I watched Joel Osteen, a T.V. Evangelist, with Martin. I don't like to watch T.V. Evangelists, but he does and so some mornings we watch together. This morning part of Joel Osteen's message was The Garbage Truck Theory. I Googled The Garbage Truck Theory and found this on someone else's blog. I find it quite insightful. I hope you do too.
The Garbage Truck Theory
Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. If they happen to dump it on you,don't take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and moved on. You'll be happier if you did that rather than fight them.
So this was it: 'The Law of the Garbage Truck'. I started thinking, how often do I let garbage trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people: at work, at home, on the street?
It was that day I said, 'I'm not going todo it anymore.' I see garbage trucks everywhere and everyday. I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off. I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and I move on.
Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting. Good parents know they have to welcome their kids home from school with hugs and kisses. Teachers and parents know that they have to be fully present and at their best for the people they care about.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. What about you? What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?
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4 comments:
That is excellent Sherry. Most people lighten their load by dumping it and, in fact, that point really gets misconstrued by those that "dump" under the guise of "sharing". Every time we spread misery we harm ourselves first. Venting is another form that I am making only a bit of progress with.
Right speech is really what it's all about ...
Sherry,
Your post is thought provoking. We learn to avoid negative people and that is easy to do save when its someone you love or someone you feel bound to help.
Then you do wind up dealing with their garbage. I was carrying around a large load of garbage and people helped me to deal with it.
They didn't avoid or shun me when I came lumbering down the street. So I find Osteen's metaphor to be weak. Jesus worked with the sick and the troubled didn't he?
Il Capitano
30
You're absolutely right Jamie.
There's a balance that has to be maintained. I have several people in my life who like to dump. In fact, they don't have much to say at all if they aren't dumping.
I had to learn to listen without feeling the need to fix them. I also have to know when to step back because you can only get dumped on so much before it starts affecting your own mental health.
People take good things said by old profits ... about helping the sick, the poor, etc. ... to an extreme and then we create weakness in those people. Helping and listening is one thing, but there comes a time when people have to take responsibility for themselves.
Just my two cents worth.
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