So the last couple of days have been hot hot hot- in the mid to upper 90's, which is pretty unusual for the end of May/beginning of June. They have consisted of a whirlwind of events including: more pool time, riding friend's horses, seeing old friends and adjusting to the time zone. I cannot believe how much I have missed this area and all the people who live here.
However, this has nothing to do with today's life lesson.
Life Lesson: Make promises mean something.
As I was casually promising to N today that she could sit in my saddle and then realizing just a few minutes later that she in fact could not (the saddle was located somewhere else) it hit me- Why don't promises mean anything anymore? It's not just here in this situation that this is applicable. Promises everywhere are casually being tossed around like a football during thanksgiving without even the slightest thought as to whether or not they can be kept. How many times has a high school girl heard the words "I promise I will always love you" only to have that promise broken in a heartbeat. But this isn't a jaded love issue-It's something I am guilty of in my own life. The situation between N and I today led me to believe that maybe it's something we have instilled into our life at an early age, that promises are informal. "I promise we will keep in touch"- This one is big, especially in my life. I have made so many friends that I have ultimately lost simply because my life has been too hectic to bother to actually keep in touch with them. Maybe I meant it at the time but couldn't follow through or maybe it was just a casual version of a good bye. Either way, something is out of whack.
So tell me, how can we fix this?
Should promises be less common or should we work harder to keep them?
Sincerely,
The Nanny
Both. Promises should only be made if they are meant to be kept, and we should work harder to keep them. I also made a promise today that I didn't keep, and I am going to make it right tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteDon't beat yourself up too much over it - I don't think that either of us make promises with the intention of breaking them. Things sometimes happen, and we have to learn to deal with that.
Sometimes things just don't work out. I'm sure when you DO have your saddle, you will keep your promise to N. I do think there are people who make promises just to shut someone up, or save face. I try not to make promises unless the percentage of me being able to keep that promise is almost 100%. Otherwise, I will use the words "I'll try to" or "we'll see if we can".
ReplyDelete