Perspective On Problems
photo by @contentpixie on Unsplash
When “first world problems” first became a phrase, it adequately revealed just how ridiculous some problems actually are.
For example, when the bottomless brunch runs out of waffles, or when the 20-minute oil change takes 27 minutes, or when “your” spin bike is occupied by another cyclist, and you have to take deep breaths in response.
While I am not nearly this extra, I am certainly still spoiled enough by the safety and security I have in my life to get flustered over some very not problematic problems.
This is even more apparent with wars (plural) being fought as we speak on the other side of the world, and although I’m no PoliSci major or otherwise remotely qualified to comment, I do feel capable of saying it is obvious how non-problematic most of my problems are.
Here is a non-exhaustive list:
I couldn’t find a spare pair of contacts for several days because we renovated our bathroom and I couldn’t remember where I put them.
When we dropped my boyfriend off at the airport for a weekend trip, he said “I love you” to our dog, but I got a “see you soon!”
I bought a bag of oranges at the grocery store (read: I did not plant, water, tend, or forage) and when I got home and tried one, they were sour and going bad.
Our energy plan limits power usage from 3:00-6:00 PM, so I have to cook dinner (with the food I have and the cookware I have in the beautiful home that we have) by 2:30 PM or after 6:00 PM.
I sleep with socks on and left one in a hotel bed recently (in a room that overlooked the mountains in Lake Tahoe) and now I have a sad single sock in my drawer.
I like hot showers (and have hot water available anytime from a rain shower head 9 ft. from my bed) but hot showers dry out my scalp so I have to take slightly less-hot showers.
Sometimes my boyfriend wants to watch TV in the living room but I don’t want to watch his show so I go to our bedroom to watch a different show on our bedroom TV, but I can kinda still hear his TV a little bit.
My car (that I bought brand new and contains both heated seats AND a heated steering wheel) needed an oil change and tire rotation this week during my fall break and instead of relaxing, I “had” to drive to let someone else do these things to the car (even though I had to take no time off work to do this).
The on/off button on my electric toothbrush is caved in and it feels funny when I press it.
Oof.
It’s easy to get sucked into our own worlds and allow small, not really real problems to feel like big, very real problems.
Next time your bangs don’t lay the way you want or your coffeeshop is out of both your first and second choices of milks, take a seat, take a breath, and do something nice for someone else.
Working within your bubble to make the world even an ounce better, especially in times like these, is a beautiful way to remind yourself that you share the world with others, and others may be dealing with other things that the problems-court would certainly rule as very, very real.
Yours with love,
Emily Rose // Miss Magnolia
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