Mondays Stink

Let's think about things that make us feel bad. For example: Mondays.

Mondays are so awful for many people that it ruins their Sunday nights as well. It's sort of like roadkill. You smell it a half mile before you pass it, and then you keep smelling it for at least another half mile. Maybe that's why Wednesday gets all the hype. Tuesday makes us uncomfortable because it still stinks like Monday.

Speaking of things that make us uncomfortable. Yesterday I searched for and found a recording of a sermon by Martin Luther King Jr. The sermon did not unsettle me, but what happened BEFORE I watched the video recording of it DID alarm me. Before the video began playing, YouTube felt it was necessary to tell me the content may be inappropriate to some audiences. Say what? What would MLK Jr ever say publicly back in the 50s and 60s that would be inappropriate NOW?

Listen to the message and tell me what would be so inappropriate that you need to be warned before hearing it?

Does the same warning pop up before you watch a music video of any popular recording artist? How about any clip of the latest paranormal Netflix series? How about before any livestream video-talk show filled with profanity and "adult" innuendo? Let's be for real.

But that is not my point.

My point is this: do you and I avoid ideas and topics that make us uncomfortable? Do we avoid or reject feedback from others just because it makes us feel bad? I'm not advocating seeking out people to insult you and identify 6 reasons why you will never amount to anything. But honest feedback acknowledging reality is good for us. If you're sick, somebody needs to communicate that to you and help you determine what the illness is. They would be of no help to you if they only cheered you on and fed you 2 donuts and an iced coffee.

Hype and superficial affirmation. Sometimes I think America runs on it.

Would it be inappropriate to inform you of something you may be wrong about? Or would that just be uncomfortable? There is value in receiving contradictory feedback. Our reflexes make us pull away from pain or unpleasant things. But after the initial recoil, we should stop and consider if we were actually in danger, or just uncomfortable. Instead of slapping a warning label on it and trying to avoid it, maturity and intelligence would advise us to re-approach it and see how the alarm, although upsetting at first, may actually be good for us.

Funny story:

"I don't need to take a shower," my elementary-school aged son told me as he pushed his hand through his hair. "I'm not even sweating."

He held out his hand as evidence. The perspiration dripped from his fingertips.

He defended himself, "Well, I just started and I'm barely sweating."

"Take a shower," I repeated. "You stink."

Undesirable realities must be confronted if we are going to remedy them. Physical hygiene is one thing, but what about mental hygiene? What about spiritual hygiene (33:00)? Practicing good hygiene is essential for health and progress.

So before we all go rushing out to change the world, or just try to suck in enough air to hold our breath long enough to make it past Monday and part of Tuesday, stop. Don't try to leap over things you need to face. It may be hard. It may be uncomfortable. But it also may be worth the temporary unpleasantness. Growth does not come without resistance. Don't believe me? Ask Frederick Douglass (3:15). It may be a struggle to be open to tough ideas, but the greatest struggle is against yourself.