Eating Crow

"...let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God."(James 1:19-20 KJV)

I know those verses by heart, but there are times when it becomes painfully clear that they do not always rule my heart. Yesterday was one of those times.

I called my new OBGYN clinic to verify that my pregnancy test had been forwarded from the clinic I despised. During that conversation, the lady mentioned that she was going through her list to confirm appointments.

"Yes, I'll be there at 9:30 tomorrow morning," I replied.

"9:30? No, your appointment is at 2:15," was the unexpected response.

I got frustrated. After all, I had to arrange a babysitter for the girls, and I knew nothing of the appointment change. What if my friend couldn't watch the girls at that time? I did not get ugly or mean to the lady on the phone, but I know I sounded frustrated as I told her that I would go ahead and try to rearrange my day to fit the new appointment time. The lady proceeded to confirm that the pregnancy test results had indeed been faxed to their office and again stated that the appointment time was 2:15. I told her that I would be there.

I got off the phone with her and called my friend to see if she would still be able to watch the girls. She said it would be no problem, and I expressed to her my frustration and dissatisfaction with the scheduling change. After all, I hadn't even been told of the change! If I had not called to confirm the records transfer, I would have gone at 9:30 and then would have had to go right back home. What kind of service is that?

After I got off the phone with my friend, I went to my day timer to change the appointment time in my calendar. Wait a minute! The calendar already said 2:15. I was the one who was wrong, not the poor lady!

Then I started thinking - it really didn't matter who was right or wrong regarding the appointment time; my reaction was wrong, even if I had been "right." (Did I lose you there? *smile*) "...slow to speak, slow to wrath..." That certainly was not me! I was upset, and even though I attempted not to communicate that anger to the lady, I know I still communicated my frustration with the situation. What a fleshly response!

So I've had a good helping of crow. I called my friend and explained that I had indeed been mistaken as to the appointment time. I told her that I was wrong to have reacted that way, even had I been right, and apologized for complaining to her - something I never should have done. (Problems should not be talked about with others who have no bearing on that problem.) She graciously agreed to forgive me and told me I was only human.

Today, I need to apologize to the appointment lady, let her know that she was right, and tell her that even if I had been right, I still had no excuse for not accepting the situation with grace. *sigh*

How do you handle this kind of situation? I know I'm not the only one to have had to eat crow.