In Search of Peace
Charles P. Eberson
A Senior’s Observations,
Opinions and Rantings
Is the honeymoon over? Did the New Year resolutions you made with all good intentions take hold or are they a work in progress? You are trying to be the best you can be, right? That is what most of us are striving for. A new year offers a chance for renewal. Perhaps a chance to be a better person for ourselves as well as those closest to us and a chance for a more peaceful, healthy existence especially during these challenging times. I have made resolutions in the past that are pretty ordinary; stop smoking, lose weight, deal more effectively with stress, eat better, read more, watch less TV to mention a few. I have been more successful with some than others.
I stopped smoking almost forty years ago, but my head still snaps around when the scent of a Marlboro Red wafts by. I’ve lost and gained enough weight to build another human. It gets more difficult as one gets older. I have been months without a TV when my wife and I took off on a nearly three month camping trip and didn’t miss it at all. At this writing, we are traveling and have not watched TV for over a week. Again, not missed.
The big challenge for 2022 is peace. I, along with probably most of you, are bombarded by “peace violations” from multiple sources. I have heard “don’t let anyone steal your peace” but that is easier said than done. With that being said, since my wife and I are retired, the workplace stress, which had been substantial for both of us is gratefully, no longer a factor. Our circle of friends and family has been whittled down so interpersonal contacts are solely at our discretion. It appeared that while I was only entering the third week of my resolutions, there was hope for me. Hope for a more peaceful 2022 with less anger and lower cortisol levels.
Alas, this was not to be. It only took a call to my cable/internet company to take me down that dark path. I needed to transfer to service to another location. Navigating the endless prompts begins the downward slide. I finally reached an agent and explained my request which I had to clarify multiple times. Finally, after a torturous forty minutes, the agent said my request was taken care of. I asked if there was a confirmation number/code/something to assure me everything was completed satisfactorily. I was told that was not necessary and I swear I heard a rooster crow in the background. This prompted me to ask where she was located since I was unaware of any “bring your rooster to work” day that I knew of. She told me she was “offshore”; more specifically, the Philippines. I guess they are working from home/farm/barn.
I had my suspicions about my request being handled correctly so I called back, again being subjected to all the prompts. My fears were confirmed when I was told that there was no record of my request being completed. I was then transferred to a second and finally a third agent who completed my request without a rooster in the background and sent a confirmation via my phone.
That’s four people to do one task. I was then emailed a survey to rate my experience. How clueless do you have to be to not know how abysmal your service is but I could not resist the temptation and rated them as poor as I was allowed. A futile gesture at best.
The way I have to look at it is I now have forty nine weeks of 2022 left to work on my peace and that is something to crow about.
Charles Eberson has been in the newspaper business for over 25 years. He has worked as a writer, advertising executive, circulation manager and photographer. His photography can be viewed at charles-eberson.fineartamerica.com
