Why I…use the somewhat offensive phrase wipe your own butt.
There was a time in life when someone else had to wipe your butt. Hopefully, if you can read this blog, that is no longer happening. At a certain age it was OK to have someone else wipe your butt. You weren’t embarrassed or ashamed. It was a part of life. But at some point you learned how to do it on your own and didn’t rely on someone else to clean you. I try to have a lot of patience with people. What I don’t have patience for is someone who knows what to do but doesn’t do it for whatever reason.
For example…if I email you I don’t think I should have to follow up with a phone call to let you know I emailed you. And after I give you the follow up phone call I don’t think that I should have to text you to tell you about the phone call that tells you about the email. If I have to follow up with a person that much I’m wiping their butt because they aren’t doing what a person their age should do.
You could say this phrase when you have to clean up after someone, cover for someone because they are slacking, and or remind someone how to do something for the millionth time in a row. I have lots of examples, but I think you get the point. Whenever I say this I try to say it with a smile to lesson the blow. In fact sometimes I do things that make me think someone should say this phrase to me.
It’s OK to make mistakes…we all do. It’s OK to not know how to do something…babies don’t know how to wipe. It’s just not OK to not do something you know you should do…by the age of 16 you shouldn’t need help wiping.
I wipe a lot of butts in a day. Today I said, “I sound like a broken record, Read the directions, Read the directions, re- re- re- read the directions.” I often get too frustrated to use humor, but the kids laughed. Unfortunately, nothing has changed. I am still a glorified butt-wiper. Do you suppose this analogy would work with fourth graders? Maybe not.
I wipe butts ALL day too. Some times literally, since I have 2 kids who still need help with this, and then some times I am wiping butts in the context you were describing! It is frustrating to have to constantly clean up toys when my kids are fully capable of cleaning them up on their own. Being a mother is all about wiping butts, haha! But I am still thankful to have butts to be wiping, hehe!
lol. i have wiped quite a few and i am sure there are times that mine has been wiped. fun analogy, will have to use in the very near future.
Are you the author of this blog robshep.com?
DP, I am.
DP, Rob is…I guess I’m signed in under Kyle’s name, but Rob wrote this blog.
interesting, the “voice” was slightly off… still similar, but slightly different tone. Did you write it from Texas, maybe that impacted it?