When Everybody’s a Bozo

Do you ever have those days when it feels like the circus just pulled into town and the clown car drove straight to your address?

My guess is that most of us do.

It’s a good clue when I hear myself spouting for the third time in as many minutes, “you Bozo!” (usually while navigating traffic), that it’s time to take a look at my own red rubber nose.

Occasions when everybody’s a bozo aren’t partial to only those behind the wheel, though. Here are a few more inviting side shows…

• You may think you’re surrounded by them in your workplace, and that recently circulated memo confirms it.

• You’re convinced the Big Top has been permanently erected on that piece of property you call ‘home’.

• Every single person in front of you in the checkout line, including the cashier, is instantly sporting the same bright orange hair dye job.

I could go on, but I think you get the point:

Little irritations, if not checked, make it easy to jump through the flaming hoop of thinking that everybody’s a bozo but us. We’re too busy inducting others into the Brotherhood of Bozos to see what’s plain as the red nose on our face: Sometimes we’re someone else’s Bozo.

Honestly, there are times others can come up with some stellar irritating behavior. Since trying to corral the clowns is about as easy as stuffing them back into that tiny little vehicle of theirs, what can we do to change our mindset when little irritations, aka Bozos, abound?

1. Don’t buy tickets to the circus!

This is a matter of choosing where to invest our emotional energy. If life seems like a three-ring circus going on around us and we’re acting like the resident bear, it may be time to downsize a ring or two. You know what? The show will go on without us.

2. Conduct a clown lineup. Will the real Bozo please stand up?

Ask ourselves – and answer truthfully – who it really is we are irritated with. Suddenly, the world is far less full of Bozos and we will often find there is only a clown or two left with whom we need to deal.

Sometimes, we’re the Bozo left standing up. If that’s the case, sitting down and removing the clown makeup for a clear look at what’s irritating us about us, is the next best posture we can take.

3. Put yourself in the others’ clown shoes.

It’s tough being a Bozo. I don’t think anyone really likes being regarded as one. (That is, unless it’s their vocation and those shoes are part of their wardrobe! Even then, I don’t think a real Bozo would appreciate being looked down upon).

It’s here that the rubber nose meets the road.

People really are not Bozos. Their behavior, less than tactful responses, or downright rudeness may irritate the living daylights out of us, but they don’t deserve our labels. They just require extra grace.

Perhaps you’ll join me in practicing a new phrase until it flies out our mouths as easily as “you Bozo!” once did…

“The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you!”

If for awhile all we can choke out is “Grace!” – it’s better than running off and joining the circus.

In fact, I have a better idea. If you’re ready for a refund on your ‘circus tickets’ or need help conducting that lineup, I’m just a few helpful steps away.

Besides, socks are much more comfortable than those clown shoes!

~ Nancy

 

photo credit: Chris Blakeley via photopin cc
photo credit: RellyAB via photopin cc
photo credit: Larry He’s So Fine via photopin cc
photo credit: Flicktone via photopin cc