I hate, hate, hate that my whole day can be put off by a single, small, event.

I had a terrific evening with close friends last night which involved poetry, much discussion of phobias rooted in childhood, fairy tales and nursery rhymes, Little House on the Prairie, and lots of my father’s delicious red wine. I woke up with my day all planned, and settled down to review and correct a pile of student homework.

The very first thing I picked up was a journal which began with negative response to, and criticism of, the material covered in the first two classes, and questioned the teachers’ qualifications to teach them.

It soured everything. The next two journals and sets of homework I read were fantastic, full of reflection and creative, thoughtful responses to the home exercises. If only I had picked up one of them first!

Why do we focus on the negative issues to the exclusion of the positive? Why do we remember the bad things, but not the good?

I resent the fact that this person has affected me to this extent. Logically I know that it’s a personal response, and it’s perfectly valid in a journal, but it doesn’t change the fact that it was the very first thing I read. I’m irritated because it had such an effect on me. As a result, now I’m grumpy, and nothing I seem to do snaps me out of it.

To quote a very old friend: “muttergrumblegrr.”