Day 32- Treat the Disease, Not the Symptom

TLL has Pausch discussing his friend who was in debt, but took yoga classes every Tuesday to help relieve stress. All the while, she continued to worry about her debt. He ran the numbers and realized that is she took a part time job and worked every Tuesday night instead of going to yoga, she could pay off the thousands of dollars she owed in four to five months. The friend took his suggestion and was then able to go to yoga and truly breathe easier.

This is a really good life lesson. I find that often in marriage we fight over little things that are not really the problem. The small stuff is just symptoms of a bigger disease. My husband and I wen to see my therapist one time and within a few minutes, she told us that we were really bickering simply because we missed each other. It was the truth. Sure enough, we set up a weekly date night and then we started getting along much better.

There are so many times in life that we can put this idea into practice. In the past, I have mostly used it in my marriage. It works well for my husband and I to sit back and acknowledge why we are really fighting, truly it isn't about corn instead of greens for supper. I have also used in when dealing with my mother. I think now I am going to try something different. I am going to try to use this idea at work. If I can figure out the true reason for my discontentment, then I should be able to overlook the little things that irritate me.

--I pray that I can learn to treat the real disease that eats at me inside, and not get caught up in the symptoms. Please give my mind clarity. Amen.