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Features Stop whining, increase happiness
By Nicole McIntyre Staff writer As a society, we should learn to recognize our excessive use of both positive and negative attributes that are emphasized through speech. A few months ago, a pastor from a Kansas City church posed a challenge to his congregation. He asked the members of his church to stop complaining for 21 days. Complaining was just one portion of the negative acts that they were asked to cease. The list also included criticizing, gossiping and being sarcastic. Sounds easy right? Maybe you are overestimate yourself. The congregation wore purple bracelets to remind them of their goal for three weeks. Each time they caught themselves performing one of the negative actions, they were to switch the bracelet to the opposite hand and start counting all over again. The pastor admitted that it took him over three months to go 21 days straight without complaining. He estimated through this experiment that the average person complains 20 times a day for 30 days straight. He said that the church has received requests from churches and other groups all around the United States and as far as South Africa. So far 126,000 bracelets have been distributed. This effort focuses on not only making individuals aware of their negativity, but also on creating a better atmosphere. We posed this same challenge to different groups around campus. These groups include multiple apartment residents, campus ministry and our very own newsroom. Same rules apply: no complaining, criticizing, gossiping or being sarcastic. If these rules are broken, one must remove the bracelet and switch it to the opposite wrist, and begin counting again. At mass on Sunday evening, Fr. Piszker informed students that everything we do, even the smallest gestures, represent us not only as individuals, but also as a community. This statement can certainly be paralleled with the focus of this pledge. Also last week the philosophy department invited Stephen G. Post, author of "Why Good Things Happen to Good People" to speak at Mercyhurst College regarding happiness. Post emphasized the idea that individuals need more happiness, tranquility and satisfaction. Perhaps this no-complaining challenge is one path to achieving this goal. We will record the findings of the pledge in next week’s Merciad. Are you up for the challenge? Check back next week to see the results. How will this test impact different groups at Mercyhurst College?
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