Take Luck

"Take luck!...and care. If you have luck, take it and care for it." ~ Brian Regan.

Comedian Brian Regan has a hilarious bit called, "You Too and Stuff" in which he talks about blurting things out without thinking.

While saying good-bye to friends one day, he changes his mind mid-sentence so that instead of "take care!" or "good luck!" he winds up saying "take…luck!" "I mean, take luck and care!" "I mean, take care of the luck you might have" … digressing into conversational bedlam.

He talks about accidental conversation loops. "You too!" he replies to the cab driver who wishes him a safe flight. His waitress tells him to enjoy his meal. "You too!" he tells her back.

This "accidental conversation loop" is something I do all the time, particularly if I'm feeling nervous when meeting new people.

I can also be direct and unthinking. I'm a fan of shock humor and when I was in my 20's, I worked for a German chemical company. There was a young guy who worked in the mailroom whose wife had just had a baby. I told him how happy I was for him and then jokingly added, "You know what's great about being the mother? You're 100% sure that the baby is yours." His chest and face fell and he said, "Are you saying that I'm not the father???" I tried to smooth it over, telling him I had a weird sense of humor, but he was really offended and I felt horrible.

I really dislike olives and at a cocktail party a few years ago I mistakenly ate some tapenade. Gagging, I spit it out, wiping my tongue on a napkin, not knowing that the person who made the dish was standing right there. (Luckily, she's a good friend and we laugh about it to this day.)

My friend, Carey, often reminds me of the time when we barely knew each other and I pointed to a man who was wearing yellow from head to toe and asked her, "doesn't he look like a banana?"*

*(The actual story is worse. He was wearing red head to toe and I had used a different analogy.)

I've worked hard over the years to tame what my friends call my "lack of filter." I've gotten better, but I can still be direct and unthinking.

But you know what? I've discovered that being unfiltered isn't ALL bad;  It's authentic. It's unrehearsed. It's me. When tamed by compassion and thoughtfulness my lack of filter has brought humor, authenticity and connectedness inside my relationships. 

Is there anything about yourself you're looking to tame? What would happen if you unapologetically took the luck and goodness that was you and cared for it?