Once there was a boy named Asher. He lived with his pet dragon. He named his dragon Bluetooth because it had one blue tooth in a mouth of otherwise pearly whites. Asher believed this special tooth held the magic which allowed the dragon the power of human speech.
Sometimes Asher wished Bluetooth did not have the power of human speech, because Asher had to listen to all sorts of complaining from his pet dragon. Bluetooth complained if the house was too cold, even though he could just light the fire place with his dragon fire breath. He complained if dinner was even five minutes late but never offered to help cook it.
One day Asher sat down with Bluetooth to discuss the situation. "Sometimes, I get awful tired of listening to all this complaining," Asher said.
"Well, it isn't my fault life is so hard," Bluetooth complained.
"When you complain about a problem, it makes life harder," Asher patiently explained. "When you do something to fix the problem, it makes life better."
"Hmm. I don't know about that," replied the skeptical dragon.
"Try it for one week and see how you feel. Whenever you think of a problem try to fix it before you complain about it. You'll be happier," Asher challenged.
"Oh, alright. I will see for one week if this helps," the dragon said.
At first Bluetooth kept forgetting, and Asher would have to remind him. If Bluetooth complained that dinner wasn't ready yet, Asher would ask him to set the table. If he complained of a chill, Asher would ask him to light a fire. When he complained of the dusty floor tickling his nose when he was trying to nap, Asher asked him to sweep. And once when a stray chicken got into the house, Asher asked him to open the door so he could herd it out.
But, after all the reminding, by the end of the week Bluetooth had started to get in the habit of helping solve problems instead of complaining about them.
"Hey Bluetooth, it has been a week. How do you feel?" Asher asked
optimistically.
"Thanks for suggesting I try to fix problems before complaining. I think it has made life better around here," Bluetooth confided in him.
"Thank you for helping out around here. It has made my life better too," Asher replied.