MUSN’T GRUMBLE – PAINFUL LIVES

Am I the very last to notice the "Painful Lives" section at Waterstones in Ipswich? All these writers vying for your attention and all they want to tell you is how terrible their lives have been. The titles seem to be competing – like Monty Python's Four Yorkshiremen sketch – to outdo each other in hardship: Please Daddy No! Tell Me Why! No One Wants You! Apparently other stores call this section "Stories of Pain and Hope" and "Tragic Life Stories".

Our tastes were supposed to change in the recession and turn to optimistic tales of love, security and warmth. I looked for titles like You're Great, Daddy; Mummy, Can I Be Like You? or All Things Considered, Life's Not Bad but was disappointed.

That was until I got to row three, shelf four of the "Painful Lives" section. And nestling next to Frank McCourt and Dave Pelzer's tales of woe was Terry Wogan's Mustn't Grumble. Now if that's the new definition of a tough life, may we all be blessed with one.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (ANIV)
give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.