“ Easy On The Nerves”

How do you know when it’s time to leave ….you know what I mean…it’s time to go…you’ve worn out your welcome.  It may be obvious when you find your suitcase out on the sidewalk, but it’s usually a bit more subtle.

When I used to get on my mother’s nerves, she would say, “Okay, run along”. Hmmm, “run along”? 

My girl friend (later wife) was a bit more clever. When she decided our phone conversation had reached an end, she would say. “ Okay,I’ll let you go”. 

Over the years, I’ve noticed a number of phrases that tell me it’s time to go. Things like:

• “hit the road Jack and don’t you come back no more, no more, no more, no more…hit the road Jack …” with a little soft shoe in the background. My clever refrain was “my name’s not Jack.”
• “here’s your hat…what’s your hurry” 
• “don’t let the door hit you on the way out” 
• “I’ve got an early day tomorrow…yawn, yawn….

If you think that the book of Proverbs would be more sensitive on this topic…. think again. One translation says, “ Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house, lest he become weary of you and hate you.” (Prov. 25:17) Woooooo… hate you !!!  Let’s be clear…. “you’re wearing out your welcome”!!!

When we were planning to celebrate my mother’s 80^th birthday, I suggested we invite our good friends Frank & Rose Helfrich. She was delighted and said that would be great… they are so “easy on the nerves”. That was high praise…”easy on the nerves”. 

We want to be “easy on the nerves”. We want to hear…please stay longer…don’t leave. I have a clue that I think will help with that. We need to be people of love; people who love are easy on the nerves. We need to be servants of the Lord; people who are servants are “easy on the nerves”. We need to follow the Lord’s will and his commandments; people who do the Lord’s will are “easy on the nerves”.

We all want to be welcomed by our friends and by our Lord. We all want to hear one day from the Lord,  “Well done, good and faithful servant…. enter into the joy of your master.” (Mt. 25:23) In the meantime, let’s love the Lord and one another and welcome them into our lives with a smile and open arms…ready to serve them even when they may not be “easy on the nerves”.