Jean Ferris once wrote, “I know it’s important to do more than just complain when there’s something you don’t like. You need to try to do something about it, or you’re nothing but a whiner.”
Of late I feel a bit like a whiner – complaining to anyone who will listen to me about some of the challenges of leaving the safety and security of life in New Jersey for Colorado.
And while these “growing pains” as I like to refer to them are completely normal, complaining about situations or circumstances which are only temporary is not.
In his book, The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment, Eckhart Tolle writes, “To complain is always nonacceptance of what is. It invariably carries an unconscious negative charge.”
I think we do that a lot in life, I know I do. Instead of accepting the way things might be in the here and now, we continuously complain about them (many times at great length). Tolle goes on to say, “When you complain, you make yourself into a victim.” I’m sad to say that I’m guilty as charged.
We often can’t see it with our own eyes, but many of us are very fortunate – I’m certainly one of those people. And while I currently find myself experiencing “growing pains” in my life, my life is still filled with an endless stream of blessings in which my complaining unfortunately overshadows at times.
Tolle concludes his thought with, “When you speak out, you are in your power. So change the situation by taking action or by speaking out if necessary or possible; leave the situation or accept it. All else is madness.”
Maybe the lesson we all need to learn is that complaining solves nothing. Sometimes action is needed in order to free ourselves of the emotional burdens we place on our shoulders. While some might think that complaining is a form of communication, it’s only effective if the person you’re telling is the one who needs to hear it.
