Working Hard Worrying Hard

Working Hard Worrying Hard

This Thought Row Vignette post starts out with a short story. Then it moves on to some thoughts and ideas on Working Hard, Worrying Hard. Thank you for reading.

This short story begins with a man named Tom Adderley. Tom is in his mid 30s with a wife, two children and one on the way. He makes a living by driving a delivery truck, one of those brown ones we often see making deliveries in neighborhoods all over the country. Tom’s delivery route is considered to be more difficult than most. You see, Tom makes parcel deliveries in a small mountain community with an elevation of about 6500 feet. Towns at that elevation experience four seasons. Winter driving is definitely challenging with lots of snow and ice on the roads.

In the spring and summer months making deliveries in the mountains for Tom are the most pleasurable, but still, it’s hard work. Most of the homes are on the side of a hill. You can’t drive a delivery truck up into their driveway. To get to the front door, where he is required to leave the packages more often than not, Tom has to walk up a long driveway, and then up flights of stairs. Then heads down the slope, back to his truck. Winter deliveries can be dangerous. He has slipped and fell on the ice leading up to the front door, and especially on his trip back to the truck. Tom always considered it to be a miracle he never broke any bones.

Tom Adderly Working Hard 

Tom knew that this wasn’t a career he could stay with for too many more years, physically it was draining. It also impacted him emotionally. Some of the people he delivered to could be rude, others could be very kind and offer him a warm cup of cocoa in the winter or a glass of lemonade in the summer. There was one couple that was always particularly nice to Tom. He seemed to make a minimum of 2 to 3 deliveries there every month. He always thought it was interesting that when he went up to the door, they would open and greet him. He even thought it was more interesting that they always had music on in the background, which he never really heard about the people that were singing, but the kind couple told him we’re listening to Louis Prima and his sidekick singer, Keely Smith. Tom thought it was very endearing, so much so that he downloaded some of their music to listen to during his lunchtime break; it was very short at best when he was out making deliveries.

Tom Adderly Worrying Hard 

Tom, like most people with jobs that were laborious gave him free time to think and it’s thinking generally flowed to worrisome negative thoughts. That kind of thinking robbed him of happiness and joy nearly every single day he was on the job. He did his best to keep it from filtering over to his days off with his wife and children. He learned something that helped him deal with working hard and worrying hard. And now Thought Row Vignettes is going to share with you what worked for Tom and it will work for you.

Working Hard But Worrying Less 

Tom’s first attempts moved him in the right direction, but did not ultimately tame the worrying problem. He first started out by watching YouTube videos on how to stop worrying. He listened to ministers that had very popular books and a huge following.  Again, that certainly helped, but he knew he wasn’t quite there yet. The answer came to him from what at first seemed to be the most unlikely source. He thought about the couple that he often delivered packages to. The couple that seemed to always be listening to upbeat music. In fact, that’s where he learned about Louis Prima and Keely Smith. One day when he was making his mountain deliveries and dropping off packages, he had two small packages to deliver to that couple. Tom was placing the packages by the front door, then all of a sudden the door opened, and the elderly couple stood in front of him and asked him how he was doing.

The Life Changing Conversation 

Tom decided he would ask a couple why they were always so happy when they greeted him.

Here Was Their Response

The man spoke first, “Tom, you are a very hard-working gentleman. But my wife and I have always sensed that you were unhappy.” Then the wife spoke. “Yes Tom, we always felt that something consistently was bothering you. When you came to our door you always had a smile on your face, but we watched you as you got back in your truck and sometimes you just leaned on your steering wheel like you were ready to pray.” At this point, Tom did not know what to say. The man spoke next, “Why don’t you tell us what bothers you?” After a brief minute, Tom decided that he had nothing to lose by telling this kind couple. Yes, they were customers in a way, but he felt he could trust them and they wouldn’t share anything he said with the company he worked for. 

Tom Adderley Shares His Feelings 

Taking time to collect his thoughts he looked at the very kind couple standing there with smiles and warmth, so he began to tell them what was bothering him. “As you can tell I work very hard and being up here in the mountains year-round can be challenging and difficult. Especially in the winter, and especially when I have to put chains on the dual tires on the back of the delivery truck. I think it makes me depressed, and when I get depressed, I worry. When I worry, it makes it difficult for me to work. I’ve tried to get advice from others, especially what I’ve learned by reading motivational books, listening to YouTube channels and ministers. It all partially works, but doesn’t seem to really solve my problem. That’s basically what’s going on with me right now. I worry about my job, and how long I will have the strength to keep this kind of work going. I know I’m going to need to figure out another way to make a living.”

The couple listened to Tom and told him he was in need of some spiritual help. The couple also knew that they were not living all that spiritual themselves, but they did give him the advice he needed, which ultimately changed his life rather quickly.

Again the man spoke first, “I have to tell you, Tom, we ourselves went through periods of being concerned, and quite frankly, it made us depressed. We were concerned about our age, our health and the state of the world today.” Then the wife spoke up and said, “Here is the key Tom, it's so simple. You may think it won’t work, but I can assure you it definitely does. Every time you feel depressed, look for something to be thankful for. Everyone has things going on  that they can be very thankful for. Give thanks for your family. Give thanks for your job. Be thankful for your health. Be thankful for those you meet that are kind to you.” 

Then the man said, I’m going to tell you the final secret. “Be a blessing to all those that you meet, and be generous with kindness and support. You’ll discover that it will come back to you a hundred fold. Being thankful for all the blessings you have in life. And blessing others is the quickest way to wipe out worry and negative thoughts.” 

There you have it, sometimes it’s easier said than to actually put it into practice, but once you start, you’ll discover a whole new outlook on life. Your mind will spend less time worrying and more time being thankful and perhaps more importantly learning how to be a blessing to others. Minute by minute of every day while you’re working hard, learn that you don’t have to worry hard. When you are thankful, people can see it in your friendly disposition and in turn, that makes them appreciate you. And when people appreciate you, it just makes you feel really good inside. Be thankful, be thankful for all the wonderful things that you have experienced in life and look forward to all of those yet to come because there will be more and more as you practice thankfulness. And don’t forget being a blessing to others, it will make you feel truly blessed inside, and that in itself relieves every form of worry. You could say it will cast it out like you would want to cast the devil out of your life.