The Fine Art of Dignity and How I Lost It
Happy Sunday ladies. Because it can feel like life is in free fall, I thought I would reshare this post. I think the ability to laugh at ourselves is healthy so today I’m sharing a post that will give you a different perspective on me:) It’s about the time I crammed myself through the dog door, in the middle of the night, wearing soaking wet PJ’s… such a fond memory and got me thinking about dignity.
What is dignity?
- It usually comes with age, but there’s no guarantee.
- It’s intricately linked to one’s self-confidence and manners.
- You can fake this one till you make it…but it only feels good when authentic.
- It’s usually tested most vigorously during the impact of criticism.
- It looks like poise and acts like self-respect.
- It can’t be taken away from you but you can throw it away.
- Along with poise, it’s an integral component of being elegant.
- It can be cultivated, fostered and become a natural part of you.
So how do dignified people behave?
- They hold themselves accountable and take the moral high road.
- They respect other’s right to their opinions.
- They are polite and treat others with respect.
- They’re grounded, centered and control their emotions.
- They defend their position with assertiveness, without becoming aggressive.
- They are humble, civil and good sports.
Has the word dignity crossed your radar screen lately?
*This is an edited post. I usually have my husband proofread my posts for spelling mistakes. He asked, “Where are your boundaries for sharing personal stuff?”
Hmm… I’d made reference to a family member (his side) who I’d witnessed throwing her dignity away. I hadn’t named names, but it made him ask. So I took it out 🙂
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I try to live my life with as much grace and elegance as possible… but occasionally…it’s out of my hands.
Case in point… It was pouring cats and dogs 2 weeks ago. My husband was sound asleep, upstairs. While locking up downstairs, ( in my PJ’s, no slippers or robe), I heard a cat howling outside the front door of our courtyard. Curious, I left our house door open and slipped through the courtyard door to investigate. The wind slammed the outside door shut which automatically locked me out. IT WAS POURING! Such fun.
Luckily our garage has a keypad for access. By the time I got into the garage, I was drenched and freezing. Sadly, the door from our garage to the house was locked (I’m so efficient) with a double-key lock. You must have a key to unlock it from the inside and the outside. We installed it so burglars couldn’t reach through the dog door and unlock it. Brilliant move.
No doorbell in the garage, no key… I got down on my hands and knees, stuffed myself as far as possible through the dog door, and called for help. Then I yelled. Finally, I started bellowing like a fish wife, until my husband woke up and came to rescue me.
I must have been a sight, jammed into that dog door because he’s still laughing about it.
What does dignity mean for you?
Did you know there are people who do not have a minds eye? They can’t envision images of any kind in their minds. The do not have a functioning minds eye! It’s called aphantasia. I feel so sorry for these people since they can’t imagine in pictures ( the best part) of your hilarious story. My vivid imagination gave me a riotous slide show of each event. Thanks so much for the laugh. And a very real and human reveal of yourself.
My own moments of indignity are too numerous to count. the kind that, when you recall them, make you cringe and curl your toes in bed at night .
But when I think of dignity, I think of an impoverished, tired woman I met at a bus stop many years ago. . I’ll never forget the depth of character in her eyes nor the gentleness of her work roughened hands. Her circumstances were harsh but they did not define her. To me, that is dignity.
That’s fascinating. I’ve never heard of that. It would be sad to not be able to envision things.
I am laughing so hard at this story. I just know if you lived next door we would be good friends. You have the best stories and know how to laugh at yourself. That is so important, and so much fun to retell the episode to a group of friends for a good laugh. Thanks for sharing. And I’m so impressed you could fit that far into a little doggy door! I have a feeling I would have spent the night there….my husband would never have heard me from upstairs and would have fallen fast asleep. I’ll be laughing about this story for a while.
Ah yes, my loss of dignity was an actual fall. We were spending the week end with several couples and had gone for a walk on the beach. To get to where we wanted to go, it was either walk a long way around or wade through or jump over the little stream. Everyone but me choose to jump over the little stream, all successfully with no problem. Knowing how my feet seem to barely get more than a few inches off the ground in any jump, I sensed the impending disaster. So, with everyone coaxing me on, I took to leap and landed face down in a perfect splat in the mud. My hubby was laughing so hard, he could barely help me up. All the others were also laughing historically, some actually rolling on the ground with laughter. Thank goodness cell phone videos were not a thing then. And to their credit, no one ever mentioned it again.
Ouch! It was better before cell phones:)
Oh my. I’m looking at our doggy door. No way. I’d be stuck but good!
Very very funny. Thanks so much for the chuckle!
Jenn, by the way, do you still love your weighted Luna blanket?
Seriously considering one.
I loved it but my husband, who has size 14 feet, found it very uncomfortable because he sleeps on his back. We are back to the feather comforter 🙁
I think I might fit through a St. Bernard door. Maybe that will help you feel better.
LOL, I had a small dog then. I sure miss sweet Lucy these days.
In our current stressful time, Dignity and Grace are two important character traits for which we should strive. Thanks for sharing your story, I chuckled and I gave you a virtual high, for your sense of humor (being able to laugh at yourself and not taking yourself too seriously are admirable traits as well)