This morning at 4:45 AM I awoke to the sound of large trucks on the street below my apartment. I waited a few moments to see if they were just driving by, but they weren’t. I got up and looked out the window.
There are two buildings going up nearby – one next door to my building and one right across the street. There were two large trucks, one off-loading equipment, the other a cement mixer in the street below. They weren’t going away.
I immediately began to get angry. How dare they! There must be some law about noise at that hour. Who could I complain to? But I quickly realized that even if I found the right authority to complain to, it wouldn’t remove the noise that was keeping me from sleeping right at that moment.
So I got out my earplugs and put them in. They went in easily on the first try in both ears, and I said a little prayer of gratitude for that. I got back in bed and went back to sleep.
I did have a few fleeting thoughts of complaining to my building’s management to see what they could do. But I again realized that would only keep me feeling upset about the situation, which in reality had been easily resolved.
Yes, I would have preferred not to be awakened early. But I was only awake for maybe 5 minutes as I assessed the situation and took care of it. It wasn’t that big of a deal, and by continuing to focus on the unfairness of it, I would continue to be upset when there was no longer anything to be upset about.
My lesson is whenever I feel someone is stepping on my toes, encroaching on my rights, and I’m tempted to complain, what I really need to do is look at how I can do something to make the situation okay for myself, then do that.
Because in the long run, I just want to be happy. How it happens – whether through my actions or those of another – doesn’t matter.
And quit complaining!
Blue Heron Wisdom 