This is a story of two men, John Sparkles and Andy Moody.
As their last names reveal, John and Andy each have a disability. John is
negativity-handicap. He can’t see the bad side of things. He is ceaselessly hopeful and positive. Andy is just the opposite. He sees only the bad side of
everything. There is no silver lining with him.
Their story starts with a routine day in their life and
ends where they should end. Both John and Andy are lawyers specializing in
divorces.
They run a small firm with no more than 5 staffs. Both are of the
same age, 45, and are married with children. The parallel doesn't end there.
Let's go close-up.
Here are the two of them driving to work in the morning.
There was a traffic jam. Both were running late with a difficult client waiting
at 9 am. At this time, of all time, a car unapologetically cut into John's and
Andy's lane. John refused to horn. He was slightly annoyed no doubt but he
dismissed it. He thought, "Mm...he
may be late
too. Maybe he has his own reason. Anyway, live and let live I say."
However, Andy didn't take it lying down. He horned with rage and was fuming.
"Nutcase," he thought to
himself. "This inconsiderate pig.
What is his problem? Maybe a woman driver. Must be a woman driver. How the hell
did she get her license?" While Andy simmered, and was even boiling
inside, John was cool. He let it slide. He refused to focus on how the driver's
conduct entitled him
to be pissed off. He distanced himself from the epic
center, the boiling point.
Then, not surprisingly, both of them were late for the appointment.
This enraged “Mrs. Loudfire" as
their client was coincidentally called. John and Andy responded with
professionalism. They both apologized with sincerity; although Andy Moody was
less enthusiastic about it. "How
come so late?!" their client yelled. They glanced at their watches and
it reads: 9:08 am. "Sorry, I was
caught in a horrible jam. Please
accept my apology,” they replied along
similar lines. Their client seemed unpersuaded and demanded some refund for their
tardiness.
They tried again and this time, they were smiling from ear
to ear, hoping that their client would drop the dead donkey. But when the shit
hits the fan, it blows in all direction. "No, you are not professional," their client reacted,
struggling to hold back her tears. "I
am minded to switch representation. I am going through a divorce here, broken
and
depressed even, and you are not helping with this lateness and hypocritical
apology."
Andy was shocked. He felt a swell in the nape of his neck.
It was warm in fact. Hot. His heart
drummed up the heat. His mind went on a blood hunt. "Look here, I did not plan this. I have already apologized. Can we move
on with the meeting please?"
John Sparkles on the other hand replied, "Oh, I am sorry to hear that. Forgive me for
being insensitive. Tell me more. Please sit down. I want to hear your
story."
While John's client sat down and shared her pain, Andy's client was less
settled. She was still fuming. Andy then turned mechanical and kept apologizing
with each apology becoming less sincere than the one that came before. Worse
still, each apology wedged deeper his anger.
After a while, both John and Andy managed to calm their
clients down. The difference was in the emotional nuances between them. John
and his client, however impatient she was at first, both felt a connection and
the relationship
rose to a new level. On the other hand, Andy and his client
kept it together by tolerating each other. It was merely business as usual.
The day then proceeded quite procedurally with the usual
papers signed, filed and posted out. Just when it is about time to clock out
and go home, both their secretaries did something uncharacteristic. They forgot
to file an important appeal by the prescribed deadline. Talk about uncanny coincidences. It was not a fatal flaw but it had
its
repercussions. Andy received the news with an expression of shock and John
took it with a pinch of salt. "What?
How come? How can you forget? Client is going to have my head for this! You had
better solve it right now. You are supposed to be my eyes and ears not my
banana skin! OMG," Andy shouted.
John was quiet for a while and said, "You really have to be more careful. These
are real people behind those papers. Mm...it's going to be tough from here. How
late was it? Let's damage control. Make
the application to court to file out of
time and let's hope we get an understanding judge (sigh)...anyway, it's not
life and death. Go home after you're done." John smiled and left,
heavy in thoughts.
Andy drove home that day with crippling dread sloshing in
his mind. He was fuming and worrying. He could not believe his luck, a really
bad one. First it was a pig of a driver, then a swine of a client, and it ended
with a pain in the rear-end with his secretary. Andy Moody was indeed moody. He
returned
home ignoring his wife and children. He tried his best to utter one
word or two to them and then went to sleep early. His sleep was no doubt
disrupted but he forced himself to sleep, battling the slumber.
John Sparkles sorted out his thoughts on his way home. He
went home a little under the weather but he still greeted his children. After
dinner, he shared with his wife about the whole fiasco and they prayed
together. John like Andy did not have a sound sleep that night but the
difference was again
subtle. John saw a spark, a ray of hope, in the whole
episode. He refused to dwell on the negative. It however did intrude - the
worries that is - but John consciously diverted its dimming effects. He
reclaimed the power to feel hopeful and grateful.
On the other side of the fence, Andy could not
forget that day. It was horrible for him and it stayed that way. Everything
thereafter reminded him of that day. Although his client's divorce was closed
and his secretary had made the successful application
to remedy the late
appeal, Andy was bitter about it and was less trusting of his secretary. All in
all, Andy was always negative while John remained ever hopeful.
Herein ends the story of two lives, that is, a typical day
in the life of John Sparkles and Andy Moody. Not surprisingly, the many days
after that day were no different from that day as portrayed. John and Andy in
fact went to their grave with their handicap intact. One was negativity
handicap and the other was positivity
handicap. One just saw the good side of
everything and the other the bad.
And in their tombstone, if you bother to linger on a
little longer, there is again this nuanced difference. No, it is not in the
number of years they had lived. John lived to 82 and Andy lived to 85. No, it
is not in the number of people who attended the burial ceremony. They both had
the same numbers of attendees (maybe John had a little more). And no, their
tombstones were both marbled and about the same size. The difference is
in the aftermath.
John had regular visitors unlike Andy. Over the years,
Andy's visitors thinned out. Even his family reduced their visits to once every
five years or six. But John's visitors came regularly and quite unexpectedly.
They came at different times of the year and many years thereafter. Some of the
regular visitors were his loved ones and close friends. Others were less
familiar to those who knew John and most came under the covers of anonymity.
They all came to pass a message. They left brief notes by
the side
with their handmade token of appreciation. They just felt that they
had to do it. They felt that it was the least they could do. And if one takes
the time to read the notes and sum it up, the common sentiment that runs
through them is this: "You've made a
difference in our life, John. We miss you." Cheerz.
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