I told Connie she needed to think like a duck, be the duck, because ducks have waterproof feathers. Using the preen gland near their tails, ducks pick up oil in the gland with their head and bill and spread it all over their bodies. Without this oil and constant preening they would be left with no protective barrier. Now picture a duck floating on the water…as it reaches the shore, it drops its little webbed feet, spreads and flaps its wings spraying water in every direction. As it folds its wings inward, you can see the duck vibrate from bill to tail spraying water, yet again, in every direction. And that’s just what Connie needed to do. You see nothing sticks to a duck, so it doesn’t matter if it’s raining cats and dogs because it makes no difference. It’s all just water running off their backs. It just doesn’t matter!
I keep a supply of rubber duck’s on hand at all times. I have given out quite a few ducks over the years. By the way, I made sure I mentioned this to my husband recently in case something ever happened to me and he ran across my duck stash. I thought I should make sure he knew what the story was. Although, now that I think about it, it might have been kind of fun to leave that for him to figure out! Anyway, after the conversation with Connie, I mailed her one of my ducks. I told her to display it proudly on her desk. Then when the yammering starts in, focus on the duck and preen to her hearts content. If necessary, walk out of the room and tell the yammerer, “Talk to the duck.”
I’m happy to report that Connie has made quite a flap. Her duck has empowered her to even leave her office while squawking, “Quack…quack…quack.” No, I’m not making this up. Connie has made sure to continue the preening on a regular basis. She doesn’t want to be caught off guard and find her feathers soaked. It’s important to note here, even if you haven’t preened lately, it’s never too late to start letting everything just roll off your back. It’s all about attitude, and you’ve got to start someplace, so think like a duck!
© Copyright Michelle Clark 2010
