"A guy gets a new dog. He can't wait to show it off to his neighbor. So, a couple of weeks later when the neighbor finally comes over, the guy calls the dog into the house, points to the newspaper on the couch, and commands "Fetch!"
Immediately, the dog climbs on to the couch and sits, his tail wagging furiously. Then all of a sudden, he stops. His doggie smile disappears. He starts to frown and puts on a sour face. Looking up at his master, he whines, "You think this is easy, wagging my tail all the time? Oy vey... This constant wagging of the tail puts me in such pain, you should only know! And you think it's easy eating that stuff you call designer dog food? Forget it. it's too salty and it gives me gas. But what do you care? You try it!"
The neighbor is absolutely amazed. In astonishment, he says, "I can't believe it!"
"I know, I know." says the dog owner. "He's not yet fully trained yet. He thought I said, 'Kvetch!'"
At times we may find ourselves caught up in cycles, going around day after day and constantly complaining about the same things. To our friends it may sound like a broken record. I know some people who have been complaining about the same things for thirty years, "Why is it so hot? Why are my neighbors so loud? Why is my husband/wife so stubborn? Why is my boss so nasty? Why is my mother so demanding?" and so on.
Some people get so used to it that it starts to become part of their vocabulary. If we try to offer them solutions, their immediate reaction is, "It won't work", "I've tried it before", "You don't understand the problem" and so on. They give the impression that if they stopped complaining they would have nothing left to talk about.
Click on the link below to find out how to deal with problems so that you won't have to complain ever again.
http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/68358/jewish/Stop-Kvetching.htm
Speaking about dogs, I am sure, by now, that most of you have seen the hilarious video about a man blowing shofar and a dog unexpectedly joining in.
The first time I watched the video, I burst out laughing. But, when I replayed it to my son, hours later, I thought to myself that the dog had heard the call of the shofar, had been inspired and had changed his behavior. What about me? A week into the month of Elul, have I heard the call of the shofar? Have I changed my behavior to merit the beneficence of G-d and to be judged favorably for the coming year? Rosh Hashanah is fast approaching. I have to pay more attention to the shofar's call.
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