Why Do People Tell Me Their Troubles?
Is it my sympathetic face or my aura of respectability?
I’ve just got back from a wonderful holiday. I’ve met great people, seen interesting places, and eaten far too much. There’s only one thing that marred the experience; oversharing troubles.
Not mine (perish the thought), but fellow travelers who use me as a sounding board for their worries.
It’s flattering, but annoying at the same time. I have enough things of my own to lose sleep over, without their adding to them.
On holiday I like to socialize; over meals, over a drink, and maybe a chat with a neighbor as we survey some magnificent ruins.
But I also like to have a little “me” time; time to think and reflect on recent events. For a few moments each day, I find a corner of the lounge, grab a coffee and a book, and hopefully signal to the world that I do not want to be disturbed.
It doesn’t work.
My demeanor seems destined to attract the lost and the lonely of the group, and usually, no more than a few minutes pass before I am joined by an anxious face and a bucketful of woe.
Can anyone help me?
What am I doing wrong? I don’t want to have to literally place a notice saying “Do not disturb” every time I want to be alone with my thoughts, but I’m beginning to think this may be the only answer.
