Pilgrimage Preparation Post #3 ~ July 11, 2019

St. Olaf’s Way, Norway ~ July 11, 2019

Pilgrimage Preparation Post Day #3   

No complaints, everything a lesson for the Good, finally 
A pilgrim does not complain, a pilgrim does not complain, a pilgrim does not complain, a pilgrim does not complain. This is tough when we are traveling. Buses are crowded and late, weather is unpredictable and you really wouldn’t believe some of the sleeping conditions in hostels and albergues. Other travelers brought better rain gear and a better camera. You are used to a sleep-number bed and tonight you got the top bunk in the hostel and you need to go to the bathroom three times in the night and you have to become a gymnast to crawl out of said bunk and not wake up the pilgrims below you. Everyone else is breezing up the hill/mountain with the greatest of ease and you are sure you are going to need emergency medical care to make it to the top. You realize that you have just brushed your teeth with sunscreen. The forecast calls for 7 of the next 8 days on your walk to be torrential rain. And, I haven’t even mentioned the feet problems, feet deserve whole post of their own! Oh man, there are tons of things to complain about while on one of these pilgrimages. However, we actually find everything pretty hilarious. The group think provides a shared forum and complaining morphs into shared tales and fond memories. However! We will return from this mountain top experience and things aren’t so funny anymore and we are not pilgrims, we are just regular Joes’ in our families. How can we not complain? I googled sayings having to do with complaining. You know the signs teachers and coaches put up in their classrooms? Here are a few choice sayings concerning complaining; The more you complain about your problems, the more problems you will have to complain about ~ Zig Zigler, Don’t complain about things you’re not willing to change ~ curiano.com, Complaining is finding faults. Wisdom is finding solutions ~ Ajahn Braham, Complaining about a problem without posing a solution is whining (ouch!) ~ Henry Ford, and my favorite, Complaining doesn’t burn calories! ~ anonymous. Complaining actually must serve a purpose in our lives. When I look at the history of my complaining I see a pattern emerge. I complain when I have not given myself enough time to get something done. All of the sudden, I find myself out of time, with no resources to deal with traffic, no patience for the check out girl to change the tape in the cash register, and basically no “good nature” to deal with the “spilled milk” problems of the day.  The complaining begins because of my lack of planning. I also complain when, maybe, I want a conversation starter. It goes like this, “don’t you just hate it when….” Voila! I didn’t have to be witty or smart or interested in the other person, I just had to suggest a common problem and bam! a conversation! I complain when I am too tired physically and mentally to “pose the solution”. (Sorry Mr. Ford.)  As I am writing this I see that complaining is truly, the lazy way out. Instead of complaining, I can plan, create more interesting conversations, and most importantly think before whining. I can become more aware, more grateful and more kind. No complaints, everything is a lesson for the Good, finally.