Who Is The Guest Of Honour?

One of my favourite films of all time is ‘Guess who is coming to dinner’ with Sidney Poitier. It’s such an iconic film that blazed the trails on many front with the first on-screen kiss between a black man and a white woman.

This came back to mind as I watched an Instagram video where a young Middle Eastern boy helped to bring some dishes to the dining room where his father, some people and a ‘guest of honour’ were waiting for their meal.

As the boy stood next to his brother, he asked who was the guest of honour for the occasion. Both his dad and guest of honour responded and to their shock, dismay and laughter, the boy said once they finish eating they should all leave and go back to where they came from.

He went on to complain about his mum slaving away in the kitchen since the previous day which obviously did not sit well with him. I suspect he wondered why so much work had to be done to prepare for anyone. It was obvious from his reaction that his mum went above and beyond which probably made him compare what life was like before the arrival of the guest of honour.

For this young man, it seemed like no guest was worth the toll the event had taken on his mum. He empathised with her, felt her pain, recognised her hard work, and he wanted to protect her by addressing the issue.

It made me wonder, ‘what is the sufficient ask from anyone?’ When is it right to do as the young boy did and demand that change must happen in your life, community, business or workplace.

This boy lost sight of what his culture demanded or expected, he didn’t consider how his dad or the guest of honour would feel.

It was a good thing that they all saw the humorous side of his rebellion. I have no doubt that his mum would have been mortified when she heard about what he said but she would also have been proud and happy that she had a child who was willing to fight for her well-being.

Here are a few things to ponder on:

Who is the guest of honour taking a toll on your mind? What is weighing you down and causing you emotional distress? Are you entertaining past regret, abuse, shame or guilt, pain or humiliation? What is the impact of all of these emotions on you? It’s time to send the guests packing and request they take their leave because you are done entertaining them.

Who is the guest taking a toll on your body? Are you entertaining poor eating, sleeping or drinking habits; are you carrying around excess weight that you know you need to shed for your well being? How are you hosting this guest? Perhaps you are feeding an addiction or have gotten into the habit of late night snacking, poor dietary habits or surround yourself with the wrong foods.

Again, it might be time to send this guest packing before it gets comfortable enough to invite other guests along compounding your problems.

Stop waiting on unwelcome guests and stop letting them take a toll on you. Go for that medical check up, take the medicines you are prescribed and follow medical advice so you can deal with any unwelcome guests in a timely manner.

Who is the guest of honour taking a toll on your actions? Are you concerned with what others think of you or perhaps you seek their approvals at all costs. Are you fighting hard to belong or keep up with the Joneses? If so, you might be entertaining an unwelcome guest that is taking a toll on your finances, sense of worth, self esteem, thought process and decisions.

Who is the guest of honour taking a toll on your time? This could be the things that are distracting you from your life’s goals. TV, online gaming, addiction to online content, Social media usage, pointless scrolling, incessant worrying, anxiety and keeping the wrong companies can all be distractions. These unwelcome guests can cost you your job, business, future, family and relationships.

That little boy saw what wasn’t good for his mum and he addressed the issue head on. It’s time for us to do the same.

Do a critical assessment of your life, determine who you are waiting on and the toll it’s taking on you; acknowledge and confront the issue head on. March to the living and dining rooms of your life and ask any unwanted guests to leave immediately because your days of accommodating their ‘tolls’ are over.

Who or what is the guest of honour in your life and are they the right guests to entertain? Are you putting too much effort into the wrong things, investments or people? Some people are wired to take advantage of you, manipulate or ask for more than you are able to afford. The ball is in your court; address the elephant in the room and demand your freedom.

Thank you for reading and sharing my post with others. Happy Mothers Day to all the mothers out there doing all it takes to take care of their loved ones. Please take a cue from this young boy; look out for and look after your mothers.