694 PS TO LINE OF CONTROL AND MY AGING DAD
PS
While writing yesterday’s story, I didn't mean to imply that The L of C acts as an infallible tool in every aspect of self discipline.
Twice when I was utterly unnerved by something going down in my life, Dad's frustration, concerning something in his life, pushed me too far at the wrong time, causing him to receive a far less than stellar reaction from me. Several times over these past eight years, my reactions have been less than optimal with Mom, as well.
The beauty of the L of C is two fold in that its reliability factor allows me to maintain a cool head when surrounded by hot heads most of the time, and I'm grateful for the speed with which this acquired trait cools down my mind whenever a jack-in-the-box, hot headed reaction is my own :)
On the other hand, I've also come to recognize this: When others come to expect logic under fire, a rare emotional outburst arouses attention, fast. Example: Following an extended family conference call, which proved frustrating beyond self disciplined control, I listened to my adult son, David thrash himself for tongue lashing every deaf ear that had persistently pooh-poohed the crises we'd been working to deflect for close to a year. Later, I mentioned My son's remorse to my niece, Dory, who replied: Tell Dave that the depth of his alarm alerted everyone within earshot to the necessity for immediate action.
In recent years, I've come to see where my strong hold on self discipline had, at times, worked against my achieving heartfelt goals in that the calm, good natured tone of my voice had allowed others to ignore the imminence of crises boiling over ... onto them.
Today, when laying out the framework of The L of C for others, I remember to clarify the concept of balance in all things—After all, another way to refer to total control is 'up tight'. Upon awakening this morning, it dawned on me that I'd not expanded upon that sense of balance for you—and now, I have :)
As my post is finis and today is about to offer lots of fun, I'd like to wish the Happiest Mother's Day ever to one and all!
Your friend,
:) Annie
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