Are you just moaning when you should be moving?

“If you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it.” ~Anthony J. D'Angelo, The College Blue Book

Les Brown tells this great story:

One afternoon a man walks past a house and sees a cute old couple rocking in their rocking chairs reading the paper. Lying in between them is a dog moaning as if its in pain. The man silently wonders what the dog is moaning about as he walks past.

The next afternoon the man walks past the same house. Again the couple is out there rocking in their chairs, sipping iced tea, and reading. Again the dog is lying in between them and moaning. The man is a bit worried about the dog, but he again passes and says nothing.

The third day the man makes a point of walking in front of the old couple’s house to check on the dog. He’s distressed to find the same scene - the old couple contentedly reading while the dog moans in pain. The young man feels compelled to say something.

“Excuse me” he calls out to the couple. “What’s wrong with your dog?”

“Oh him?” the old woman said, pointing the dog. “He’s just moaning because he is lying on a nail.”

The young man is confused. “If he’s lying on a nail and its so uncomfortable, why doesn’t he just get up and move?”

The little old lady smiled at him and said “Well honey, it hurts just enough for him to moan about it, but not enough for him to move yet.”

***

Do you recognize yourself in that couple’s old dog? I know there have been times in my life when I’ve done my share of moaning when I should have been moving. Many people spend a lot of energy moaning about problems that they have the power to fix. Often the problems aren’t even that difficult to fix, but we get in the habit of moaning and forget that we could just move. We think that moaning/whining/complaining is going to make it better -- maybe if we moan long and loud enough someone will come and move the nail for us or carry us away. It almost never happens that way. Moaning just usually makes the nail seem that much more painful. So when you read this story, ask yourself: are you lying on a nail and just moaning about it? If so, stop moaning and start moving!

[30 Day Blogging Challenge: Day 1]

Monick P. Halm, Esq. is the founder of The Reiki Coach and Equilawbrium Career & Life Coaching. As a coach, law of attraction student, Reiki Master, and former lawyer, Monick inspires and supports lawyers and other professionals in crafting their careers and lives so that they are ones of balance, passion, and joy.