Story: Working for Carter Brothers
This is a ANGER story – finding space and time to let go of the anger.
Read the story below
In his saner moments, Chas knew he was lucky to have the job working at Carter Brothers. It was well paid and goodness knows jobs were difficult to come by in the current climate. He would tell himself this whenever he got angry and frustrated which was becoming more and more frequent.
“Chas, I need that report for my meeting. I don’t know what you do with your time but you certainly don’t prioritise well. Now get it on my desk by 4pm at the latest.” Before Chas could explain, Jack had stormed off in a fury leaving him consumed by bitterness at the injustice of it all.
The Sunday after this particular incident, Chas was walking his dog – an activity he used to enjoy, but recently his thoughts had been consumed by Jack Carter and the company with its increasingly impossible demands. The sun was warm and Chas sat by a river watching the clear water flow over the stones making their colours rich in the sparkling sunlight. While the dog sniffed around after doggy smells, Chas picked up a stone and threw it into the water. It made a satisfying splash. Suddenly, he was on his feet throwing bigger and bigger stones as he thought about Jack Carter and the company. Incident after incident loomed up in his mind and with every one, Chas threw another stone into the water in fury at all that had happened. Finally, his anger was spent and he sunk down to the ground again.
The sun was warm on his face and Chas began to relax and feel calm. A thrush broke into song on a nearby branch and his dog put her head on his lap. Chas watched the water flow over the stones as it had done for years and he knew at that moment that Carter Bros wouldn’t change any more than the river would change its course; the only person who could change was him. He resolved to go into work for his contracted hours, ask his Boss what he felt was a priority each day and do the best he could in the hours he was employed. So it was that as Chas walked back home with the dog, he felt something fundamental had shifted inside him.
Of course, Carter Bros still wanted their pound of flesh and there were times when the boss was unreasonable, but from that day onwards, it was as if Chas had been given a pair of spectacles, so different did life seem.
