Ring the Alarm … If You Must!!!

I have a love/hate relationship with my alarm clock. It is both a blessing and a curse. Every time it goes off I wonder at the rudeness of disturbing my much loved sleep. Begrudgingly though I really do need it. I am a night owl so if it does not go off I do not wake up. But I hate that I need it. It is an unwelcome presence in my life. Every time it goes off I want to curse, or to throw it across the room. It always seems to go off too soon. But I need it. So I tolerate it. I think my resentment comes from the fact that it takes me away from the much welcome dream state and brings me back to my often unexciting daily routine and responsibilities. I say that because when I have something exciting to wake up to, I usually do so long before the alarm goes off. So yes my response to the alarm may be a reflection of my feelings towards the plan for my day (or life).

Now there are people in our lives who seem to play the role of the alarm clock. They remind us of our responsibilities. They bring us back to reality, jolt us out our dream state. These people may not be popular but they are often necessary. They have the tough role of being the killjoy. For the most part they are ignored (or tolerated) but you know you can turn to them for much needed guidance. Your ringing the alarm is only effective though only if you have been given the right to do so. People in positions of authority tend to play that role. Most parents by default are the alarm clocks to their children (even though some parents obviously malfunction!). I was once asked to be an accountability partner (to ring the alarm) for someone very close. It was flattering at the time, similar to being a sponsor for an alcoholic. I may have been overeager in carrying out my duties though because before long I began to feel some resentment towards me. Soon I was left out of the very things I was meant to be ringing an alarm on. It created such a big gap in the relationship that I will forever regret having agreed to it. So yes, just because the alarm has been set does not mean its ringing will be welcomed.

I think the worst thing though is being rudely disturbed by someone else’s alarm. This alarm is usually completely unexpected and obviously unwanted and worse, not always within reach for you to switch off. For some reason the other alarm always sounds louder than what mine would have. Why is it that other people use such loud and jarring sounds for their alarms? This puts me in a really bad mood and makes me resent the owner of the alarm. I equate this to unsolicited advice. There are people who seem to think their role in life is to be ringing alarms on things far removed from them. Others think that proximity gives them the right to speak out … unsolicited. They have an opinion on everything and are ever poised to ring. Their intentions may be good but such people tend to be overly critical. And when they give you positive input, you can rest assured that the negative will follow. Their compliments tend to be IOUs for future criticism. And just like the neighbour’s alarm they tend to go on louder and for much longer than was ever necessary.

Truth is that when people are ready to wake up they do. Be careful of playing the role of an alarm in someone’s life if you have not been given permission to do so. And if you have been given permission or have the authority to do so then know that it is not going to be a popular position to be in.