“You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit!” Dontcha love that? My wife recently finished a long-term counseling sub assignment at an elementary school where she worked directly with K – 2nd grade students. This particular statement came from a young kindergarten student when Vanessa instructed the young boy to take the first miniature toy he selected in order to keep the line of students moving. He responded with, “Yep! You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit!” Wow! I’m guessing that this particular phrase comes from his teacher as a way to help students focus on being able to take what comes their way without getting overly or unnecessarily upset.
Would’t it be great if others in our world lived by that same adage? Fit Throwers Bug Me! They really do! You know what I mean. You’ve likely seen them in all kinds of places: at sporting events; in business meetings; on playgrounds; in classrooms; on city streets and highways; in restaurants; in movie theaters; in our homes; on college campuses – everywhere!
You know what happens. Someone gets the “raw end of the deal” and they throw a fit. Someone fails to get a promotion and they throw a fit. Someone feels disrespected by another whom they feel is inferior and they throw a fit. Someone fails to get into the college of their choice and they throw a fit. Someone’s child fails to get the “right call” in a game and the parent throws a fit. The coffee is cold – they throw a fit. The order is incorrect – they throw a fit. The traffic light changes – they throw a fit. They are asked to do a favor – they throw a fit. A small miscommunication occurs – they throw a fit. You get the picture . . . Fit Throwing for some is their default reaction.
I don’t know about you but Fit Throwing Bugs Me BIG TIME! Fit Throwing has become such an accepted practice by so many that we have become somewhat immune to its entirely ludicrous nature! You expect it from a two-year old or a child and even from a young adolescent from time to time. Those Fit-Throwing incidents can be expected; however, when adults who should know better engage in them, that’s a different story!
We have way too many adults throwing fits when things don’t go their way. The Bible says, “The rain (and hail for that matter) falls on the just and the unjust.” No one is exempt from problems and challenges. Tough times happen to all of us. Disappointments are common. What do we do when things don’t go our way? Maybe, just maybe our young kindergarten friend has the best advice. “You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit!” I’m thinking if we did less fit throwing and more reasoning, the world just might be a better place!
Peace!
Mark E. Hundley
