We all have them! We all have something that we find particularly annoying! Some of us have many things that we find annoying but today I am only going to mention one of my own. Wait for it….my pet peeve is people not expressing gratitude when it is in their power to do so. From the time I was a child I was taught to say, thank you when someone either did something nice for me or to me or gave me something. But today I am afraid that we live in times when people expect so much without having done anything to earn it. It is called “entitlement. A person who feels entitled feels that they have no need to say thanks because it was theirs for the taking anyway so why should they be even a smidgeon grateful. Oh, I know I said that I would only mention one of mine, but I must renig and mention just one more. The other one is contacting someone only when you need something from them. I am not talking about occasionally, but a pattern of behavior. You know that when you see the person’s name on your caller id that they are calling you because they want something from you. They never call to check on you. They never call to see how you are doing or to see if you need anything. They only call you to benefit themselves.
I am old school. I keep thank you cards on my desk and I try and send them out as much as possible. Yes, I hand write them, put a stamp on them and put them in the mail! I am a grandmother and that means that I expect my grandchildren to thank Paw Paw and me for the gifts and cards and phone calls etc. With today’s technology it only takes a minute or two to send a text or e-card. There is just so many ways to get creative to do so. I mean with the time that we spend on social media, being nosey, we could have spent a few minutes saying, “thank you!”
Hey now, my intent is not to be a “Debbie Downer” but being kind does not cost you a thing but a little time and a little effort. Please take time this week and remember the last person or people who did a kind act towards you and let them know how grateful you are. Examine your relationships and if you are that one who only calls when you want something; decide to change that. There are so many who would appreciate hearing your voice say, “I don’t need a thing, but I called to check on you to make sure that you are okay” and then let them talk!
