Everyone Is Irritating Me
My son Jake is one in a million. He has a quick temper and usually there is no stopping him from having what we affectionately call a shit-fit.
Kathy and I have become attuned to the warning signs of such a fit - and we are usually able to distract Jake just enough to turn him in another direction. I'm glad we're doing it that way because when he was a toddler Kathy read something that said to let him just play it out - so she shut the door to his room - and he trashed the place - in the spirit of the rock group The Who - he tossed his clothes, his bedsheets, every Barney tape, and all of his cute little books into a pile in the center of the room. If we hadn't stopped him - he might have doused it all with gasoline and set the place ablaze.
He's getting better.
The other night, I felt one of his dour moods coming on. I sat on the edge of his bed and very calmly asked him what was wrong.
"Everyone irritates me," he said.
"Even me?" I asked.
"Uh, yeah, everyone," he said.
"I get that way sometimes," I said.
"Really?" he asked.
"About every other day," I answered.
I remember reading a quote - and using it in a book somewhere (Maybe it was one of the ones that didn't see print) that said - "99 out of every 100 men is an asshole."
I didn't tell Jake about the quote, but I did let him know that it was okay to feel irritated sometimes, but that people are going to judge you by the way you act.
"You can't let them know they're getting to you," I said. "When someone gets on your nerves, just smile at them and they won't know what to do."
"If I yell at them they won't know what to do either," Jake answered.
He was right, of course, but you get more bees with honey, right?
"Are you always nice to people when they get on your nerves?" he asked.
How could I lie to him?
"Of course," I said. "Am I still irritating you?"
"Of course," he answered.
Hey, at least I tried - next time I'll let him in on the 99 out of 100 stat.
Kathy and I have become attuned to the warning signs of such a fit - and we are usually able to distract Jake just enough to turn him in another direction. I'm glad we're doing it that way because when he was a toddler Kathy read something that said to let him just play it out - so she shut the door to his room - and he trashed the place - in the spirit of the rock group The Who - he tossed his clothes, his bedsheets, every Barney tape, and all of his cute little books into a pile in the center of the room. If we hadn't stopped him - he might have doused it all with gasoline and set the place ablaze.
He's getting better.
The other night, I felt one of his dour moods coming on. I sat on the edge of his bed and very calmly asked him what was wrong.
"Everyone irritates me," he said.
"Even me?" I asked.
"Uh, yeah, everyone," he said.
"I get that way sometimes," I said.
"Really?" he asked.
"About every other day," I answered.
I remember reading a quote - and using it in a book somewhere (Maybe it was one of the ones that didn't see print) that said - "99 out of every 100 men is an asshole."
I didn't tell Jake about the quote, but I did let him know that it was okay to feel irritated sometimes, but that people are going to judge you by the way you act.
"You can't let them know they're getting to you," I said. "When someone gets on your nerves, just smile at them and they won't know what to do."
"If I yell at them they won't know what to do either," Jake answered.
He was right, of course, but you get more bees with honey, right?
"Are you always nice to people when they get on your nerves?" he asked.
How could I lie to him?
"Of course," I said. "Am I still irritating you?"
"Of course," he answered.
Hey, at least I tried - next time I'll let him in on the 99 out of 100 stat.
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