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Saturday, November 01, 2014

On Tricks and Treats and Life

Jean Sexton muses:

It is the day after Halloween -- what better time to think about tricks and treats.

While I don't mind kind-hearted teasing, I really do not appreciate tricks. Somehow the ones played on me by people have always seemed to have a cruel edge. Whether it be an Oreo cookie filled with white glue, a yard that has been papered, or a stink bomb placed under a door, tricks seem to be designed to humiliate, inconvenience, or harm others. I wonder sometimes if I could have a "do over," would I choose to have those tricks removed from my life. I think not. Good or bad, they have served to remind me to be kind to others, to try to do no harm to someone else, to be the kind of person who shares happiness.

On the other hand, treats are something that I think most of us welcome. For me, it is getting a well-written book that needs just a nudge to send it in the right direction of perfection. (We won't speak about the treat of brownies!) Other treats include many of the interactions with our ADB friends.

As long as life goes on, I suspect that we will all experience tricks and treats. I think the lesson I have taken away is that tricks are to be learned from and treats are to be enjoyed. May your treats always outnumber the tricks played on you.