What kind of things angered or annoyed you this week?
Maybe it was a nasty Facebook post. There are plenty of those going around (a good reason to pick up a newspaper, if you ask us).
One of the most annoying things that happened to me this week was trying to set up iCloud so my iPhone and Macbook can talk to each other.
My iPhone says I need to use my Macbook to authorize my iPhone, but my Macbook says I need to use my iPhone to authorize my Macbook.
I spent an hour on the phone with Apple technical support in an attempt to resolve this chicken-and-egg scenario.
After an hour, the representative declared the issue resolved. It was not.
While it was irritating to me at the time – and both devices continue reminding me to authorize the other – I believe this is what’s called a first-world problem, a problem of privilege. In other words, it’s not a real problem.
I recently received a call from Julie Gilbert, who lost her boyfriend and son in a tragic fire last October and only survived, narrowly, by jumping out of a second-floor window while herself on fire.
After going through an event most of us, thankfully, can only imagine, she was calling, not to ask for something or complain about our coverage of the fire, but to find a way to thank everyone in our community who supported her after the fire.
She was going to be in town to comfort a friend coping with her own loss, and we arranged to talk. You can read what she had to say in this edition.
Many people, perhaps most people, in the same situation would be angry, bitter, or depressed – if functioning at all and not lying in the fetal position in a corner somewhere.
I recently interviewed a man, John C. Dancer, going through a very different personal struggle – a years-long battle with cancer.
Despite his illness and its impact on his life and what he is able to do, he sees purpose in it – an ability to connect with and serve others who are struggling.
We could all take a lesson from John Dancer and Julie Gilbert about how to stay positive and find opportunities in adversity.
I know I am taking inspiration from both of them and trying to apply this lesson – to place my “problems” in the context of what’s going on in other people’s lives, both in our community and around the world.
If more of us could do this, we might be able to see all those “problems” we waste energy on – like internet trolls and tech support – for how insignificant they really are.
