I share excerpts from my books to give folks a taste of my content and style, so feel free to share and use with attribution. If your group plans on reading any of my books, you can find them all on my Bookshop Bookstore or via the publishers. Also, I will Zoom in for an hour (no charge) to talk about the book with your group, and if you are interested in bringing me out for a speaking event or conference, start here.
Rule #65: Scream as Needed
An excerpt from Rule #2: Don't Be an Asshat: An Official Handbook for Raising Parents and Children (Bacosa Books, 2016), p95
Every once in a while, you will want to scream at the sky. Be it in anger, frustration, or jubilation, a good scream at the universe can be cathartic and good for the soul.
Scream out loud; scream out proud.
This may be a strange lesson to read because we are not really a screaming family. I am sure there have been times where you have wanted to—me too, but we have chosen sarcasm, silent stewing, and passive-aggressiveness as our modes of operation.
Again, you are welcome. ;-)
So yeah, while it’s not a big part of how we raised you, scream when you need to: when an election goes terribly wrong, when someone breaks your heart, or when your parents get in the way of you living your life as you hoped to. Screaming can release pent-up energy, it can act as a release valve for anger, and sometimes it just feels damn good.
If at all possible, as you scream, be sure to choose your location well. You don’t want to wake your neighbor’s baby, startle your drill-wielding dentist, or give the person standing in front of you in line in the grocery store a heart attack—but then again, sometimes you just can’t help it.
And finally, when it comes to screaming, when it comes from such a deep place of pain that you cannot hold it on your own, allow others into your world, so they can bear some of the weight of your pain—and in many ways scream with you.
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