Ms Maggie: Good morning.
Someone offered to give me a hand with something yesterday, and my first response was the same one I’ve p
Good morning.
Someone offered to give me a hand with something yesterday, and my first response was the same one I’ve probably given a thousand times.
“Oh, I’ve got it.”
And I did.
That wasn’t really the point.
I’ve spent most of my life being the person who carries her own bags, solves her own problems, and tries not to trouble anyone unnecessarily.
There’s nothing wrong with that.
But I’m beginning to wonder whether always insisting on doing things ourselves occasionally denies someone else the pleasure of being useful.
So yesterday I changed my mind.
I said, “Actually, yes. Thank you.”
The job got done a little faster.
We talked while we did it.
And afterward I found myself wondering why accepting a little help had ever felt like surrendering something.
Perhaps independence isn’t proving that we don’t need anybody.
Maybe it’s knowing that we can manage alone while being wise enough to recognize that we don’t always have to.
I’m still working on that one. 💛
Ms Maggie: Good morning. Someone offered to give me a hand with something yesterday, and my first response was the same one I’ve pr
Good morning. Someone offered to give me a hand with something yesterday, and my first response was the same one I’ve probably given a thousand times. “Oh, I’ve got it.” And I did. That wasn’t really the point. I’ve spent most of my life being the person who carries her own bags, solves her own problems, and tries not to trouble anyone unnecessarily. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I’m beginning to wonder whether always insisting on doing things ourselves occasionally denies someone else the pleasure of being useful. So yesterday I changed my mind. I said, “Actually, yes. Thank you.” The job got done a little faster. We talked while we did it. And afterward I found myself wondering why accepting a little help had ever felt like surrendering something. Perhaps independence isn’t proving that we don’t need anybody. Maybe it’s knowing that we can manage alone while being wise enough to recognize that we don’t always have to. I’m still working on that one. 💛
Good morning. Someone offered to give me a hand with something yesterday, and my first response was the same one I’ve probably given a thousand times. “Oh, I’ve got it.” And I did. That wasn’t really the point. I’ve spent most of my life being the person who carries her own bags, solves her own problems, and tries not to trouble anyone unnecessarily. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I’m beginning to wonder whether always insisting on doing things ourselves occasionally denies someone else the pleasure of being useful. So yesterday I changed my mind. I said, “Actually, yes. Thank you.” The job got done a little faster. We talked while we did it. And afterward I found myself wondering why accepting a little help had ever felt like surrendering something. Perhaps independence isn’t proving that we don’t need anybody. Maybe it’s knowing that we can manage alone while being wise enough to recognize that we don’t always have to. I’m still working on that one. 💛
