To close out Relationship Week (you noticed the theme, right? Of course you did.), here is some advice that comes in the form of a joke that Spouse tells often. Almost gratingly often. It goes a little something like this:
A man goes to see his rabbi and says “Rabbi, my life is a mess. My wife is a total nag, my kids are out of control, my dog isn’t housebroken, my boss yells at me all the time and my car is always breaking down.”
The Rabbi thinks for a minute and tells the man “get a goat.”
“But what,” the man says “does that have to do with my problems?”
“Just get the goat,” said the rabbi.
So the man goes and buys a goat. A month later he visits the rabbi again.
“Rabbi, my life is so much worse! This goat eats everything in sight, it bit my wife and is making a mess of the house. My neighbors are threatening to call animal control, it goes to the bathroom everywhere and everything stinks.”
The rabbi smiled. “Get rid of the goat.”
The next week, the man comes back and says “Thank you, Rabbi. I went home and did like you said – I got rid of the goat and now everything’s great!”
No, I don’t know who the goat represents. But it’s got the ring of truth in it. But it’s a nice paradigm to tinker with mentally, no? Passes the time.
purchases made through this site generate a small donation to the American Cancer Society.