shake it off

we are told the story of the mule in the well. some gentlemen threw a live mule into a well with every intention of burying it. once it was down in the well, they began shoveling dirt onto the mule. that old mule just proceeded to shake it off and pat it down under his feet. in their attempts to bury the mule, they actually helped it get out of the well. you see, every shovel of dirt succeeded in filling the well up and freeing the mule. it just goes to show that what sometimes is meant for bad, can turn out to be good... so just shake it off.

This is my current away message. I actually got this parable from the message I heard tonight at church. Pretty crucial, actually. In a way, I feel like in a way, this is what events in my life have done for me. Years of disappointment and rejection have in a way, turned me into something fierce... The strength I have found within myself and my independence is always growing and increasing, but the fact of the matter is, that I am gaining it. Bad things that have happened and things that haven't gone my way have kind of turned me into this person who values things that other people don't value. It's made me more compassionate in a way, and it has also made me stoic.

But tonight, I also learned that stoic is not necessarily the way to be. The preacher tonight said that people who "always have a smile on their face" are dangerous people. He said those types of people are the ones that go postal on people. I can understand why... people who are "seemingly indifferent to" things that are going on around them harbor their true emotions, and they have stuff built up inside of them. At any random point in time, all those emotions could come out without warning. With me, they come out in the form of tears at the sound of "Stand Up For Love." But for others, it isn't such a romantic release.

He basically said to shake it off: to do just how the mule did and use it as a learning experience... a stepping stone, if you will.

The other great thing about this message was the way in which he spoke of the Bible verse... "God put this in the Bible so you wouldn't go crazy... because people who stay angry go crazy." The verse is Ephesians 4:26. It starts out by saying, "Be ye angry..." which I think is so funny....

...God knew he was creating creatures that were gonna get a little pissy every once in a while.

I think it's great. Basically, it goes on to say don't harbor anger. It is WAY easier said than done. It's even easier said with "shake it off."

So, I am moving from stoicism on to shaking it off.

...Mariah Carey would be proud.