Temperature Rising

The weather reports state that the temperatures are falling rapidly as the winter solstice approaches. Some are delighted, and others are in dread. For some, sweaty clothes and dampened brows have had their fill this one hundred plus degree Summer, and now it's time to be cool once again. But for others, the absence of shorts filled days and outside activities has them moaning for moving further south before the cold begins. For some the temperature is falling, but for others the temperature is rising on the inside.

One person said, “If everything could be how I like it, when I like it, where I like it and who I like it with, then everything would be alright.” Another person remarked, “The only time I get upset is when things don't go my way. As long as everything including the weather outside is just the way I want it, then there is nothing to complain about.” It really doesn't matter whether a person is speaking about the temperatures outside or the latest news report, if it is the way they like it, everything is fine. But how often does a person get the chance to stand outside, speak to the sky, and dictate the day's weather anyway? How many opportunities does one receive to decide for the rest of mankind whether it will be cold or hot, rainy or clear, with or without snow? This writer's guess is that the outcome of the weather is only wished upon and never directed. Of course, if a person is so insistent about rain one supposes they could stand under a hose or shower head, but nonetheless, the overall temperature rising or falling for everyone is not really up to them.

When the temperature rises on the inside, it's a pretty good indication that the forecast for that individual is stormy weather. Temper tantrums, and spoiled brat fits may be appropriate in some areas, but they seem to be only damaging the housing agent in these. The weather outside may only be an indication of the torment that is within, and if a person rages about such trivial matters that he or she have no control over, what happens when situations or circumstances don't go their way?

The answer to the temperature rising on the inside may come in a short serenity prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr,

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

Until tomorrow...Why Say More?