Tennis ball lessons – Dog Abby

Dog Abby:

I recently moved to a new state for work. I left behind family and friends for the promise of a lucrative job and knew absolutely no one here. My new boss turned out to be a cheat and a fraud and consequently I am now broke and unemployed. I am litigating this with the help of a labor attorney, but in the meantime, I am trying to figure out what to do. Do I stay here, or do I go back home? And how do I get the money to do either?

Broken in Baton Rouge

Dear Broken,

I used to believe that whenever my tennis balls rolled under the couch or mom’s china hutch, they were gone forever. Sometimes I would get sad and stare at them longingly. Other times, I would try to force my nose into the tiny cracks to try to reach them. Usually, this just made me sadder. One time I came and got mom. I showed here where my ball went and she moved the couch to get it for me. Do you know what happened? I found FIVE balls behind the couch! I had more tennis balls than I knew what to do with. I am sure glad I asked mom to move the couch.

There was another time that mom and dad took me to the park. I had never been to this park before, so there were lots of things to explore and new people to meet. I forgot to bring a ball, so I had nothing to chase for the entire walk. I was getting a little bit bored, but then you would not believe where we ended up! At the other end of the park, there is a magical place with a high fence. Inside that fence, people play with HUNDREDS OF TENNIS BALLS! No one was there playing when we went because it was night time, but those people had left behind so many tennis balls that I carried home two and mom filled her pockets. I love that park and I am glad that I did not bring my own tennis ball because I got all new ones!

Tennis balls are wonderful things, and they have taught me many lessons. The first lesson is that if you get sad over what you lost and continue to try to get that back, you will only get more sad. The next is that when you allow someone to help you just a little bit, you may find more blessings than you know what to do with. Another lesson is that there are opportunities to get new blessings (or tennis balls) all over the place, you only have to look. Yet another is that sometimes you have to let go of your slobbery, old tennis ball to make room for new ones. And, money is much like tennis balls — if you focus on not having any, you will never have any. If you look around with an open mind, you will find more than you know what to do with. I could go on and on, but you get the idea.

As to whether you sit and stay or run back home, both are good opportunities because you are the one who would be staying or going. If you want to go home, that is OK — as long as you are going home because you WANT to and not because you feel you do not have a choice. You have a lot of choices right now. You can go home to your friends and family and familiar surroundings and start all over with the new things you have learned.

If you want to stay, just think of all the new parks you can explore and all the new friends you can make! Mom says that every job she has ever gotten she got through networking, so be sure to read our book, Nose-to-Nose Networking. Talk to anyone and everyone and be friendly. You will be back to work in no time.

Also, before you make any decisions, please remember that just because your boss was a bad man does not mean the rest of the world is bad. We all want you to succeed.

With love,
Abby