My Alter Ego--Nelly

I have always known that I am kind of a chicken and a bit of a worrier. I'm not embarrassed to admit it. It is just a part of my personality, my genetic makeup (my mother and sister are chickens/worry warts too). I thought as I've matured, that I was getting better, that I was becoming stronger and less anxious but try as I might the truth is I'm still a "Nervous Nelly."

This characteristic has actually earned me the nickname of Nelly. It came about when we vacationed with friends a few years back and the group dubbed me Nelly. I was the one worried about missing the boat (literally, we were on a cruise), I was the one constantly making sure that we were getting the most out of each port of call and counting heads to make sure we were all together. I know they called me that name with love in their hearts (they better have) and I find it kind of funny and fitting, but I want to move beyond my "Nelly" tag.

The thing is, it is hard to teach an old dog new tricks. I find my inner Nelly comes out a lot. I just need to control her a bit. For instance yesterday when I was at the doctor's office, I needed to get my nerves under control but couldn't. Granted I was anxious about the medical procedure that I was about to undergo, but did I really need to start crying when the nurse came to put the IV in? Not my best moment. And when my son had a social studies test this week, did it make sense that I had the stomachache? No, it did not. When our school auction catalog came out with a few oversights, did I really need to get worked up about the fact that maybe we misrepresented some of the items--probably not. No one is reading it with a fine tooth comb besides me (albeit after the fact). Good grief, that Nelly is hard to reign in!

I guess I need to accept the fact that she is a part of me. That maybe being a bit of a worrier is o.k. In some strange way, maybe this little quirk of mine has served me well. After all, my son got an A on his test, the auction turned out great and I had a doctor (instead of the nurse who I made nervous) insert the IV in my arm painlessly. Whoa Nelly!