Monday, August 20, 2012

Eggs

One of my favorite movies is Annie Hall. At the end of it Woody Allen tells a great joke to describe his relationship with Annie: A man goes to see a psychiatrist and says, “Doc, I’m pretty sure my brother is crazy and I don’t know what to do - he thinks he’s a chicken.” The doctor says, “I think you should consider having him committed,” to which the man replies, “I would…but I like the eggs.” I just love that joke, it holds so much wisdom, because we all have those kinds of relationships in our lives. We hold onto people and situations even when we know they’ve run their course, because on some visceral level those people soothe our egos. They flatter, keep us buoyed and feed into our delusions--somehow always knowing just what to say or do to keep us needing more. And even though we know, deep in our hearts, they are pandering, and sometimes lying, our fragile little egos keep whispering, “but how will I live without those ego-boosting eggs?!” I know I have found myself in that situation more times than I care to admit. I hold on to people and things that are no longer serving any real purpose, and in some cases causing me pain or keeping me stuck, because I can’t give up those tiny, little moments that continue to feed my delusions. But at least I’m aware. And lately I’ve been asking for my eggs sunny side up. I figure if I’m going to buy the eggs, I should at least have them served exactly how I like them. Dig in, RT