Are you one of those people who can speak to anyone else, stranger or not, with equal ease? Well, that just makes life simpler, doesn't it? Especially for the people around you. For as long as I can remember, the people in my life have used my unabashed-ness as their tool to information. I have always been the one they ask to call someplace and find some information, be it to check if someone's flight is arriving on time or make reservations at a restaurant. And in fact I was so used to getting on it by myself, that it took me a while to realize that everyone else around me was just as eager to dump the responsibility on me too. I suspect my mom was on the same boat as me. It's all ok now when you are old/young enough to get away with most things you are asking about on the phone. But being a trained "mouthpiece" from very young has it's disastrously comical outcomes.
I once remember when I was really little, maybe 12, when my brother was back from some eye appointment and it hadn't gone well and he had had some allergic reaction to some drops or something like that. Me being me, I called the doctor's office to enquire what had gone wrong. The doctor's husband picked the phone and I asked for his wife. He asked me who was calling and as naive as I was, I didn't want to admit to being the patient's kid sister. And so I told the next obvious thing - that I was his mom. Now when I think back about it, I can laugh over it... but it was humiliating back then when the husband did handover the phone to his wife while audibly saying, "It's a child saying she is your patient's mother." Gulp.
And so I learned early... don't let the others' excuses fool you. Be it improving your language skills, or interpersonal communication, the only reason you are doing it and they are not is because they've labeled you the mouthpiece. If someone else can do it better, you should probably make them do it, even if they convince you that you are the best person for the job. After all, how hard can it be to dump back some of that responsibility on them?
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4 comments:
My mom is unabashed as you are. Though there were situations which brought upon adversity. Still I leave lot of things to her - managing the house hold that includes finance, maids, gurka, house owner etc. I just relax. Does that mean I am lazy? May be :).
Shant->Exactly, either we started by taking up the responsibility or we adapted to the responsibility being dumped on us. :P Either ways, it does confirm that you all are lazy :D.
Guilty as charged :(
I know how it feels Jaya, needless to say which side I am in, ofcourse the mouthpiece!
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