What Do You Worry About?

There's lot's to worry about these days, especially for those of us who are concerned about the capabilities and temperment of our new president.  International relations, climate change, health care, education and protection of journalists freedoms to report the truth, are just some of my many concerns.

There have always been world issues to worry about.  During my childhood we worried about the cold war, building bomb shelters and practicing bomb drills at school.  Money, health and a good job are just some of the things adults may worry about.

Does worrying about ANY of these things help?  No, most of these issues are out of our control.  Can I honestly do anything about do about whether Trump cozies up to Putin or not?  No!  I did my best to work to elect representatives that reflect my desire for the direction of this country and lost.  Now I can only hope that reason will prevail.

Things that one might worry about that they can actually do something about include getting a better job by getting a good education and working hard, keeping one's body healthy by diet and exercise, but this only goes so far.  You can't do much about rare unknown diseases, even if you do your best to stay healthy.  Does worrying about whether you will get some disease help?  No, it will just make you nervous and upset.  I remember a line from a Tom Hanks movie last year.  It was the movie where he works to release the Russian spy.  Tom Hanks asks the spy if he is worried about what will happen to him.  The spy answers,  "Will it help?"  I have used  this line so many times in the past year when people tell me they're worried about a particular thing that might happen.  My answer is "Will it help?"  The answer is always "No," and shows  how important it is to concentrate on worrying about things you can actually change.