The Things You Can't Control

Photo by Pim Chu on Unsplash

Question for you: How do you respond to things you cannot control?
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“It’s a dollar seventy-five more. It’s AM Peak, everybody needs a Peak ticket.”

“But the man at the station told me-“

“It’s a dollar seventy-five more. That’s a Senior ticket, you need a Peak ticket.”

The ticket collector is not having it this morning.

Nor am I. Please shut up. The both of you.

I’m surprised that the ticket collector did not cut the passenger some slack. It’s an insignificant amount of money in the grand scheme of things. The passenger appears to be legitimately confused, and did pay for at least apart of her fare already. Whatever. I guess it’s all a matter of principle...

A matter of principle. Isn’t that the reason most arguments occur? I say this. You say that. We both have (or believe we have) evidence that backs up our claims. I’m right. You’re wrong. So, let’s duke it out to the death. Dive headfirst into a shouting match. Disturb the peace. Disrupt everyone around us. Isn’t it all incredibly selfish?

This train car was quiet. That is no longer the case.

Blah.

I think most of us would be lying if we were to say that drama does not keep us entertained to a certain degree. Generally speaking, we appreciate when people keep their shit together. But the spectacle.... when everything spills out all over the place, when someone spins wildly out of control.... now, THAT is something to witness. THAT is what gets my adrenaline pumping.

Is it wrong to enjoy chaos? Well... enjoying chaos doesn’t necessarily mean we were a catalyst. In theory, we are just an innocent bystander. At the same time, perhaps, we have a moral obligation to lend a sympathetic ear to those in distress, splash water onto the flames, help put out out the fire, even if it wasn’t us who started the fire to begin with. What do you think?

If I were to insert myself into the conversation between the ticket collector and the passenger, I don’t think I could accomplish anything more than adding fuel to the already raging fire. So, I do nothing but observe. And try my best to be amused. I’ll take being amused over being frustrated or annoyed any day.

I’m not especially religious, but let me close with these words from the Serenity Prayer:

“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.”