{"id":153,"date":"2009-08-28T11:57:44","date_gmt":"2009-08-28T11:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/everydayethics\/2009\/08\/failure-friday-i-ignore-things-i-dont-want-to-deal-with.html"},"modified":"2009-08-28T11:57:44","modified_gmt":"2009-08-28T11:57:44","slug":"failure-friday-i-ignore-things-i-dont-want-to-deal-with","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/everydayethics\/2009\/08\/failure-friday-i-ignore-things-i-dont-want-to-deal-with.html","title":{"rendered":"Failure Friday: I Ignore Unpleasant Things"},"content":{"rendered":"

At the risk of living up to our “popcorn” reputation, here’s a truly trivial confession: There are days when I walk right past stuff I simply don’t wish to see.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
Like the cat puke I don’t want to clean.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
We’ve got two little mongrels (one a lot less little than the other) and sometimes, well, they like to leave us “presents.” <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
And sometimes<\/i>, when I hear that familiar, unmistakable huah-huah-huah<\/i> sound in the middle of the night, while my husband snores peacefully at my side, I think to myself, “I could just as easily claim I<\/i> was sleeping too.” Worse yet, in the morning when I pass the fetid pile, there are occasions when I put on my blinders and pretend I didn’t notice. “How long can I get away with this?<\/i>” I wonder as I slink past the puke.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
A better question might be, “How old am I in this moment?<\/i>“<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Consideration. Not my favorite virtue. But one I’m striving to cultivate nonetheless. As my love for my husband and gratitude for my family deepens with maturity, I try to overcome my selfishness and innate laziness, and develop my atrophied moral center a bit more.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
My husband is a far more considerate person by nature (or perhaps he just had spectacular parenting): he washes out the coffee pot for me in the morning, he resets the showerhead so it won’t blast me in the face… I could go on and on. His sense of fairness and responsibility are truly something to behold.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
I, on the other hand, struggle not to be a grinch. But as I continue writing this blog, and find within myself a growing concern with being a mensch, it’s becoming increasingly important to me to put in the effort<\/a>. What’s cleaning a little cat puke, after all, if it will save the man I love from being grossed out?<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Maybe feline vomit is not the driving issue of our time, but I think these little considerations, like not stealing cabs<\/a> out from under one another, or tipping our server<\/a>s, add up to the composition of our moral whole. If we fall down on the small stuff, aren’t we more likely to let the bigger stuff slide down the line?<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"Charlotte<\/span><\/div>\n
So, folks… Are there things you leave to other people that you ought to do yourself? Or are you simply sickened by my upchuck confession?<\/b><\/i><\/div>\n

<\/i><\/b><\/div>\n
Subscribe to receive updates from Everyday Ethics or follow us on Twitter<\/a>!<\/strong> <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At the risk of living up to our “popcorn” reputation, here’s a truly trivial confession: There are days when I walk right past stuff I simply don’t wish to see. Like the cat puke I don’t want to clean. 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