Squirrel Guts and Red Pop

My step-grandpa used to always have me sit on his lap when I would eat anything. When I say anything, I mean we would eat squirrels, artichokes on our pizza, salami, flavor-ices, fried chicken, and popcorn. Even as a kid, I hated getting messy and I'd always ask for a napkin. This grandpa would tell me, "Just wipe it on my shirt." I would look at him like he was crazy. What kind of civil adult would let a child wipe their sticky fingers on their own grandpa, for god's sake? He would always answer the same way: "Grandma can always wash it later." 


I loved this and it has stayed with me my whole life. Caring about the little things in life like dirt and buttery popcorn won't do you any good. It's just not worth it, and it can always be fixed somehow anyway. I take this philosophy everywhere and apply it to anything. My class is too hard? Screw it, I'll do my best and that's the best I can do. As it turns out, my best is usually better than I thought. Even if it wasn't, my GPA would lose the most minor of a percentage and life would go on. A coworker is getting on my nerves? So what? I'll just work harder than them and get a raise they'll never get. I chipped a nail? It will grow back. My socks are smelly...well, I should really have that checked out. That actually needs attention. 


Anyway, this idea of shrugging off the little things is a universal cliche, however I learned it through my grandpa and that injects a little more meaning in the words for me. I'm not saying that you shouldn't do anything when bad things happen. I'm saying when bad things happen, freaking out about it won't fix anything. In fact, it's detrimental. Having a calm and collected mind will help you make better decisions about what to do next. What I'm trying to say is that my best advice for anyone in their adolescence, heck, any age, is that if something is holding you down, or pissing you off, or stressing you out, take a second and breathe. Ask yourself if the consequences are really worth you getting upset about. Just wipe your dirty hands on your shirt and forget about it. You'll wash it later. Dirt don't hurt, as it were.