A "Tough Beef" Moment

Gordon B. Hinckley is credited with this quote, although one site I found said he was quoting Jenkin Lloyd Jones:

“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, and most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is just like an old time rail journey … delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.”

I LOVE this quote because while it still captures the optimism and gratitude that President Hinckley became known for, it acknowledges the very HUMAN moments that make up most of our days, and recognizes that just because we're Latter-day Saints doesn't mean we have to pretend that our lives are perfect or that we're always happy, every moment of every day. Yes, we can still be grateful and hopeful in even our darkest moments, but I feel validated somehow when I read this quote and realize that those "tough beef" moments DO still happen, and not just to me.

I've been having a LOT of those moments lately. I suppose I should have expected it, since we had a few months of relative calm...but still. Those moments never cease to surprise or overwhelm me. And mostly it's all the "stuff" of life that you can't plan for--identity theft, health issues, external family things that you can't help but be affected by, learning to find that "high degree of mutual toleration" with your very human spouse and your even more human self, big companies practically screwing over the little guy...and no one to fight your battles for you. Add to that my own battles with depression and job hunting, and it's been a very stressful summer. But as much as I'm grateful for those brief, beautiful vistas and the occasional "thrill" of the ride, which I DO experience now and again, I'm doubly grateful for those moments when I can share my mundane life with someone else and when they can share their troubles with me. I appreciate more and more the honesty of close friends who clue me in to the fact that EVERYONE struggles, NO ONE has the perfect marriage or the perfect life, and, in essence, I'm not a horrible person for being unhappy sometimes. All of this is part of the human experience we signed up for, and maybe someday it'll all be worth it. That's the human tie that binds us.