Suddenly,
a cockroach flew from somewhere and sat on a lady.
I wondered if this was the cockroach’s response to all the glory
that was spoken about it! She started screaming out of fear.
With panic stricken face and trembling voice, she started
jumping, with both her hands desperately trying to get rid of the cockroach.
Her reaction was contagious, as everyone in her group got cranky
to what was happening.
The lady finally managed to push the cockroach to another lady
in the group.
Now, it was the turn of the other lady in the group to continue
the drama.
The
waiter rushed forward to their rescue.
In the relay of throwing, the cockroach next fell upon the waiter.
The waiter stood firm, composed himself and observed the
behaviour of the cockroach on his shirt.
When he was confident enough, he grabbed and threw it out with
his fingers.
Sipping my coffee and watching the amusement, the antenna of my mind picked up
a few thoughts and started wondering!
Was the cockroach responsible for their histrionic behaviour?
If so, then why was the waiter not disturbed? He handled it near to
perfection, without any chaos.
It is not the cockroach, but the inability of the ladies to handle the
disturbance caused by the cockroach that disturbed the ladies.
I realized even in my case then, it is not the shouting of my
father or my boss that disturbs me, but its my inability to handle the
disturbances caused by their shouting that disturbs me.
Its not the traffic jams on the road that disturbs me, but my inability to
handle the disturbance caused by the traffic jam that disturbs
me.
More than the problem, its my reaction to the problem that hurts me.
The Take-Away :
The women reacted,
whereas the waiter responded.
We should not react in life, we should always respond.
Reactions are always instinctive whereas responses are always intellectual.
