Member-only story
Let’s assume right now that we’re having one of those private, heart-to-heart talks with our fathers that we all aspire to have. We may be drinking beer on the patio in the rear while listening to crickets and watching the moon slowly approach the horizon. Maybe we’re laughing about some movie we just saw or reminiscing about that time you threw the hamster in the toilet when you were five (it survived, happily).
Let’s also say that, at that idyllic patio moment, I’m suddenly moved by the gods (i.e., after three drinks) to impart some of that overused fatherly counsel designed to entirely reconfigure your worldview. Let’s assume that I turn to you, my darling son/daughter/ambiguously-gendered person who I don’t fully understand but who I nonetheless love and accept unconditionally, and I teach you the most important things in life that no one has ever taught you.
The First Important Life Skill Is Learning How to Stop Taking Things Personally
The unfortunate side effect of having our consciousness inside of our brains is that everything we experience in life involves us in some manner. Today, a driver cut you off in the street. The TV news show you saw last night disturbed you. This year, you had additional cash thanks to your company’s remarkable growth.
