Life questions, still unanswered.

1. There are people in the world who deliberately set out to ruin your day. There aren't many, but they do exist, and I never fail to be amazed by that. No doubt I've offended many in my time, but I promise you, I've never sat and thought about how to do it. (My bad behavior finds its source in thoughtlessness, not deliberation.)

2. On that same note, how am I supposed to respond to said offensive person(s) when it is later determined that I might be useful to them? If our last conversation, two years ago, was you telling me that I'm not worth the money I get paid, do I need to return your friendly phone call asking how I'm doing? Do I act, as you do, as if that conversation never occurred? Can I return your call just to ask you why you said that rude thing? Or would that be considered rude, on my part? If you don't do your work for me because it is "beneath you" and then later decide I can help you get a job somewhere else, what am I supposed to say, in that situation?

3. No matter how much experience you have, there will always be someone to come along and tell you that "you don't know [anything]." This was true twenty years ago when I was just getting out of school, and it is true now, that I have a Master's degree, run my own business, worked for some of the most difficult people on the planet, have lived in big cities, little cities, foreign cities, and, finally, an Indian Reservation in rural Montana. It's true now that I've been married twice, am a step-grandmother to five, and experienced more change and sadness than I could ever share with you on this blog. Even if I wrote about it every day. It was true when I had $70,000 in student debt and its true now, after it's all paid off, and I live the cash-flow life of a small business owner. But unless someone knows you well, it's difficult to smack them back with any response that captures all that life experience neatly, in one sentence.

4. In life, I think (except for God) we are truly alone. We share our lives with people, and that love and friendship - though genuine - is never exactly what you need, 100 percent of the time. The question is, why do we never stop yearning for that perfect confidant? Is that the search for God? Or just plain old self-centered emotional wandering?

Comments

[Jennu]

I with John. This person burned their bridges when they insulted you. If the tables were turned, they wouldn't help you.

[John Nichols]

#2. If they are looking to do business, just inform them that your book is rather full right now, so any new assignments will likely be at rates higher than previous communications.