WISDOM FROM A PIMPLE

After days of tummy waltzing with delicious

Alphonso mangoes the heat kicks in and I am

greeted one morning with a pimple.

It appeared on the right side of my face.

Close to the lower part of my cheek.

Brilliant enough to be clearly noticed a few

centimeters from my lips. I stood and stared

while it greeted me and its presence sunk in.

For me a pimple is strange company

considering I never had any in my youth!

So I peered and lifted my face and angled the

mirror. That was study enough. I turned and

walked away.

Day one unfolded. I lived every moment doing

the job at hand as best I can. The pimple

remained positioned and present in all the

order of work executed. But it did not claim

my interest. I did not try to conceal or

camouflage it. I had accepted it as part of me.

I made no pointed mention and directed no

attention to it. It was there accepted as part of

me.

The next day it hurt. I gave it a passing glance

as I stood before the mirror to get ready for

day two with my additional feature. The

pimple remained positioned and present in all

the order of work executed today too. But it

did claim my odd thought for it made its

presence felt with a twinge of pain now and

again.

I did not reach for it nor try to comfort it

directly. The day wore on as time has a way to

go. Nothing out of the extra ordinary

happened as teacher’s, parents and students

met me. Satisfaction ruled as I did my job.

With a smile on my face I returned home.

Day three greeted me with the repulsive sight

of a yellowish tip on my new feature. The

truth be told I felt sorry for whoever would

have to look into my face today. And that is

assured there would be plenty of traffic of

adults and children scheduled to interact with

me.

The Pimple was begging for attention with its

angry look. It could not be missed, that’s for

sure? A dab of an ointment went on to it as I

signaled to myself to go about my day.

Yes, a cocked eyebrow, a distracted smile and

a pointed “who beat you” by a tot had me

explaining myself several times that day. With

a little effort we were able to remain focused

on the job at hand.

And day three ended.

Day four was much the same as day three.

And with the dawn of day five, life started

getting into normal mode. My feature shrank

with each coming day and was almost invisible

on day seven.

I was relieved to note that with patience

and minimum interference the pimple

was gone. I smiled.

I sure was in for a rude shock on day nine

when additional feature number 2 decided to

appear. Right near my nose.

Panic rose within my beating breast this had

to go. I cannot accept this. I did less staring

and went into commando mode in a flash

decision. I fiddled and pressed and plucked

and pinched at it. It hurt, but that did not

seem to hinder me from doing what I went

about doing to my own skin. I patted it down

and tried to make it invisible.

And invisible it was not to be. Every morning

and every night I did the same routine of

fiddling and pressing and plucking and

pinching it into submission. Days were

littered with unpleasant and unhappy feelings

when I looked at or felt the pimple.

Pain and irritation clouded my thoughts

several minutes a day. Nonetheless, I did what

I had to do work wise but in crept a niggling

irritation when least expected.

And to cut a long story short it just remained

unfazed and the days rolled into weeks and my

pimple is with me 4 weeks later. As flushed

and in bloom as the first day it appeared. I

cannot lie there are days in between when it

seemed to be receding to the low lying areas of

invisibility.

But it never really does. It’s there

right under the surface the root inflamed and

ready to erupt on a short fuse.

Here’s what I learned in all this, acceptance of

reality of the things you cannot change is the

key to a rational operational choice. Of course

the practical aspect of acceptance in any

problem is in one’s best interest. As Pimple

number 1 ‘showed me so’.

Panic is a foe and battling problems which

only need acceptance to tide them over, may

lead to unending revolting consequences.

Being in a hurry to find solutions may

camouflage the problem but the root will

always be a source of pain. “I taught you so”

muttered Pimple number 2.

All healing takes time and must begin from

within. Thus spoke the Pimples and humbled

me with their wisdom.

Love always

Joscelyn