I need a title for my essay. Help????
Like nearly every other night in the last six months, my dad stubbornly set his jaw and shoved the plate of food I had given him back at me. Once again he was refusing to eat a meal I had prepared to the specifications of the diet his doctor prescribed. There was nothing wrong with the steamed rice and vegetables, but the bull-headed old man wanted greasy fried chicken and mashed potatoes. My blood began to boil and I pushed the plate back at him. Sixty-eight years old or not, he was going to listen to his doctor eat what I cooked whether he liked it or not. The diet was important because of his heart condition and diabetes. He needed to watch his cholesterol and sodium. We stared spitefully at each other for a moment. Again the plate was pushed away, as anger flashed in my father’s eyes and he stated matter-of-factly that he was not going to eat that. My frustration had reached its peak. I’d had enough of all the fighting. If he wanted to eat crap, there wasn’t much that could be done about it. After our stand-off I wasn’t sure what to expect. The next day, much to my surprise, Dad requested a salad for lunch. This taught me an important concept that Lao Tzu mentions in his writings, “Practice not-doing and everything will fall into place.” (24) Once I stopped trying to control the details, the desired outcome happened on its own.
When speaking to his disciples, Jesus said, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life…do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (New International Bible, Matthew 6.21, 34) This is basically the same thing Lao Tzu talks about. Worrying about how to make something happen isn’t going to change the result. At the end of the day, what is meant to happen will happen. There’s no sense fighting it. While my intention may have been to take care of my father and to give him a better quality of life, taking away his right to make decisions for himself actually lessened his quality of life. The only result that came from trying to force my will upon him was frustration on both our parts. He was frustrated at being treated like a child and I was frustrated at his refusal to do what I thought was best. Once I gave up control and his freedom was restored, he decided to do the right thing anyway.
Lao Tzu’s philosophy of not forcing things to happen the way you want, but letting them happen naturally is a better way to deal with life. If you try to go against the natural order of things you will find yourself struggling. It’s easier to allow events to take their own course and learn to go with the flow.
You can review it if you want. I know it's not my best work. But I would appreciate help coming up with a title.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
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"Going with the flow."
ReplyDelete"Learning To Go With The Flow."
"To Each His Own Place."
"Relax."
"All In Due Time."
Those are excellent suggestions! Thank you!
ReplyDelete