#firstworldproblems

Yesterday, after work, I sat down with a gentleman who works near where I do, and we chatted for a while. There has been a bit of stress at my work lately, what with the new field manager making changes and all, and this gentleman was experiencing the same thing.

This guy was tired, y'all. It showed, if you know what to look for. All this bullshit at work, two mortgages to pay, the boat needs repairs, and so on.

We talked a while, and I finally told him to just shut up. Then, I asked him the million dollar question: " What do you love doing so much that you'd do it for free?"

This somehow led to a discussion of his childhood. He grew up in a war-torn middle-eastern nation, with the sound of bombs serving as his night-time lullabies.

How fucked up is the world?

Sure put my problems in perspective. How stupid does it sound that I am fretting over the miserable personalities I have to work around, and this guy didn't even know if he'd live long enough to grow up and get a job?

Of course, the guy eventually got around to turning the tables on me. He asked me the million dollar question. I gave my answer, even though it felt silly after hearing about his childhood.

He didn't ridicule me for loving audio production, and he didn't ridicule me for wishing I could spend my days helping people put together fabulous outfits.

Ultimately, we both agreed. Life is to short to be miserable. We should pursue our dreams. We should do things we love, even if it means our dreams have to take a back seat for a minute while we pay the mortgage.

This guy put my problems in perspective, y'all.

Then I went to a meeting, and heard a woman share about how she wished she could get a job; how she felt 'less than' because she didn't have one. Hearing her added a new dimension to my ponderings.

So where does all this leave me?

Grateful.

I grew up with the sounds of crickets serving as my lullabies.

I have a job.

I am not miserable like some of the folks I work with.

I have dreams.

I have the luxury of time to figure those dreams out and find a way to live them.

And if I don't figure those dreams out, at least I have a program to help me see that, #intheend, my #firstworldproblems are the kind of problems I need to be grateful for.