Category: Choosing to See the Bright Side

Optimism is a discipline that can be learned. Choosing to see the best in all situations makes us happier and healthier in the long run. Optimists live longer than pessimists.

Get Out There

Posted on by Wendy
If you stay indoors, you never know what you may miss.
If you stay indoors, you never know what you may miss.

One of my closest friends called me last week. It’s always kind of curious to me that when I have someone on my mind, I usually hear from them. I had been thinking about her and had planned to call her to plan to get together for coffee. We do that from time to time to catch up.

This time, when I suggested coffee, she suggested we meet and take a walk together, catch up while we exercise, two birds with one stone, so to speak. Being a multitasker myself, I agreed. But, when I got out of bed yesterday, it was 51 degrees. That’s pretty cold for a Georgia Peach. I grumbled to my family about how much easier having coffee was than walking.

I arrived at the park a few minutes before she did still thinking that it was awfully chilly. When she drove up, she jumped out of her car like a breath of spring time and gave me a hug. When I commented on how cool it was, she remarked about how beautiful the day was. The sky was a gorgeous blue without a cloud in sight. She reminded me that it had stopped raining.

It has rained for like the past two weeks here. Everyone is sick of it. We’ve all been praying for sun and here it was. But, I had been willing to miss it because it was too cold.

Isn’t it funny how God sometimes speaks to us through our friends? I don’t know why it surprises me because I’ve always considered friendship one of His greatest gifts. Sometimes the gentle words from a friend are clearly reminders from God.

Her reminder was that we should bask and appreciate the sunshine at every opportunity. Who knows when it will rain again? If we wait for the “perfect” conditions to get out there, we may miss the beautiful day completely.

We had a delightful walk and visit as we always do. When you have known someone for thirty plus years, you really don’t run out of things to talk about. You can sometimes even finish each other’s sentences.

Long after our walk, I thought about missed opportunities in life. How often do we miss out on something because we are waiting for the “perfect” time. We may be waiting for the kids to get older, or for our jobs to get easier, or for the economy to get better or for better weather. There are definitely times when we should wait.

But, there are also times, when we are simply making excuses. Sometimes, we need to grab a jacket, brave the cool weather and just get out there. Sometimes we are incredibly surprised by the beauty that awaits us.

We will never know, if we don’t leave our comfort zone. I’m glad I listened to my friend. A little adventure can be good for the soul. What do you need to do to get out there?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

You’re Not Done Yet

Posted on by Wendy

My son and I spent a few days at my parents’ house for spring break. My mom has always loved to take pictures and she had taken a bunch in her yard that she thought I could use in my blog posts. She did a great job and she had lots of good ones, but there were two in particular, that she wanted to show me. She said she thought maybe I could write something about them.

This red bed tree was cut down and left for dead.
This red bud tree was cut down and left for dead.

When she and my dad had some trees cut around their house, this red bud tree was cut down. They assumed it was dead. There was nothing but a trunk left. It remained in the same spot for a few seasons and moss began to grow on it. They gave up on the little tree.

They gave up on the tree, but the tree wasn't done.
They gave up on the tree, but the tree wasn’t done.

But, the tree wasn’t done. It was dormant for a little while, but then it burst forth into bloom. It wasn’t the same as before, but thriving and blooming, just the same.

I was thrilled with her pictures and she was right. I knew immediately I would write about the little tree. I was thrilled that she was watching for God in the world around her. Did she learn that from me or did I learn that from her? Maybe it was both.

Either way, I am reminded that we often give up way before we should. We find ourselves believing that the best of our years have gone by. We believe that we have little left to contribute. Maybe we’re too damaged, or too inadequate, or too old. Sometimes we sit for a period, believing those lies and let moss grow on us wondering who could ever benefit from our talents or our time.

We could spend the rest of our days as a stump of some kind, just sitting out and missing, out or we could choose another way. We could lean into the truth that comes from God.

We are each special, and loved, and unique, and as long as we are drawing breath here on planet earth, God is not done with us, nor should we be done. We each are called to fill our world with our unique gifts. Those gifts and talents don’t have an expiration date.

There is a time for rest. But, there is never a time to just give up on serving. Maybe you have been sitting out for a while. Maybe you have allowed a little moss to grow, but it’s never too late to burst forth in bloom. It’s never too late to answer God’s call.

Let’s make every moment count. Who’s with me?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Things Are Not Always What They Seem

Posted on by Wendy
Everyone has some wind in their lives. The key is to remember that it is usually just passing through and there are warmer days ahead.
Everyone has some wind in their lives. The key is to remember that it is usually just passing through and there are warmer days ahead.

The forecast yesterday was seventy-seven degrees and sunny. Finally, I thought that spring had sprung and I could move comfortably to shorts. We had a cold snap last weekend. It was in the thirties for a couple of nights. My granddaddy always said there would be one last cold snap before Easter and then it would be warm. I have no idea where he got that from, but he was usually right.

So when I saw the forecast today and planned on going to one of my daughter’s last tennis matches of the season, (thank goodness!), I was thinking I would wear shorts and soak up a little warm sun. What I didn’t plan on was a cool, persistent, wind.

Seventy-seven in March and seventy-seven in July are two very different scenarios. That cool wind changed everything. Sure, it was still very nice outside, but not shorts weather, at least not for me. I was kind of disappointed, but at least it wasn’t freezing.

That wind made me think about similar situations in life where things look perfectly sunny, happy and warm, on paper, but the cool wind made them not as rosy as they looked.

You know the situations I’m talking about; that friend or neighbor who seems to have the perfect job or the perfect marriage, that we always wish we could have, or people we know who have the perfect kids with the perfect grades, or even people we know who seem to always have it together, people who never mess up.

We all at some time or another, have looked at other people and wanted what they had because something about their lives seemed perfect or at least better than our own. But, the truth is, every perfectly sunny looking life has some wind that’s invisible to those on the outside. However, those on the inside are perfectly aware of it.

Whether or not, people are brave enough to share the truth about their imperfections with friends doesn’t make them any less imperfect.

We all have our burdens to bear. We all have our own brand of wind. That is a fact for all of humanity, no matter what people say. Perfection does not exist on this side of eternity.

But, beauty does exist as well as sunny days along with the rainy ones and the wind. God rains down blessings on everyone. The trick is to watch for our many blessings and bask in those and be thankful for those and not to focus on what others have. Their burdens and blessings are unique to them, just like ours are unique to us.

And when we are truly honest with ourselves, we usually have to admit that the blessings far outnumber the burdens and the wind is usually just passing through.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

The Divine Juggler

Posted on by Wendy

 

That says it all!
That says it all!

My life has been pretty chaotic lately. I seem to have way too many balls in the air. Our van died, so we have been actively searching for a car. We have a program at church that I am a part of, that requires a bunch of writing as well as the cooperation of ten teenagers. Our wireless router is on its last leg and keeps knocking us offline. Needless to say I know less than nothing about wireless routers. We are looking at doing a mission trip and rounding up the aforementioned teenagers for a specific date is challenging to say the least.

Now all of those things are no big deal on their own. None of them qualify as even close to a tragedy. In fact, some of them are good things. The mission trip possibility came about when the foreman on my daughter’s project last year, reached out to her through text and asked her if she was coming back. He’s a Godly man and left a permanent imprint on her heart. She really wants to go. I’m thankful beyond words for adults like that in my children’s lives.

But, at the moment, I’m really struggling with the juggling. As I was talking to my hubby about it yesterday, we finally agreed that God’s hands were all in our current chaos and we need to just let it all go and stop worrying about how it all will come together.

I’ve no doubt whatsoever that it will come together, and at this point, I can’t wait to see how it all fits.

There’s a certain peace that comes from admitting that we are powerless over most of life’s circumstances and sometimes I feel like God allows things to pile up until we get to the point where we readily admit we can’t fix it all or handle it all alone.

But, He can. He’s the Divine Juggler and He can turn any situation no matter how chaotic, into good for His glory.

I was talking to a friend of mine recently whose daughter attended an AA meeting with a friend of hers in recovery. She told her mom it was the closest she had ever felt to God. I found that intriguing and looked up the Twelve Step Program.

It was pretty powerful stuff. The first one was admitting, “We were powerless over alcohol and that our lives had become unmanageable.” I don’t know about you, but I could replace alcohol with life’s struggles sometimes or even daily stress and it would be a true statement for me.

Next was, “We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.” I could fill in God for power here and completely agree. Sanity and peace go hand-in-hand in my book.

The third one was about turning their will and life over to God. I won’t go through all of them, but it was a really good read. It’s no surprise to me that AA works and has been around for so long.

Members of AA seem to grasp the same thing that we all struggle with, and that is simply that we are not in control, but God is. When we really surrender to that notion, the peace that passes all understanding overflows from us. Now doesn’t that sound fantastic?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

A Grain of Sand

Posted on by Wendy
Remembering the power of our words can make all the difference in the people around us.
Remembering the power of our words can make all the difference for the people around us.

I jumped out of bed one morning last week and put on some sweatpants and tennis shoes. Mornings are always busy at my house. I had lunches to make as well as breakfasts and I had to coax a couple of teenagers out of bed. Right away, I felt something on the ball of my right foot, not painful, but annoying.

I didn’t really have time to be annoyed, so I just let it go. After I finally sat down to eat my breakfast, I could no longer stand it. I pulled off my shoe and my sock and lo and behold I found the culprit. It was a tiny pebble, not much larger than a grain of sand. I marveled at the fact that something so tiny and seemingly insignificant, could cause me so much discomfort.

I showed it to my son, who was unimpressed and went back to his game of Crossy Chicken. But, I thought about that tiny grain all day long and other things in life that seem insignificant that can cause frustration. Unfortunately, many such things came to mind.

Things like snapping at your spouse or kids first thing in the morning. Snippy, harsh words may seem like no big deal. But, those words first thing in the morning can ruin a perfectly good day. Who knows what great things could have been achieved that day if we hadn’t unleashed our frustrations on those around us? A tiny grain of sand can do damage.

What about offhand comments about a friend or neighbor that we really didn’t mean anything by? The intention may not have been bad on our own part, but it was perceived that way? A tiny grain of sand can do damage.

We have very little control of whether or not our words or actions will take root once they have been said or done. Sometimes they will fall on deaf ears and be completely forgotten. But, sometimes they grow. If they are good and positive words and deeds, then that’s a great thing. If they are negative words or deeds; they can fester.

What seems like a tiny grain of sand can produce some seriously hurt feelings or worse. That tiny pebble in my shoe really reminded me of the importance of the little things like praise or criticism and sometimes it’s in the very best interest of everyone involved when just keep our mouths shut. You know the old saying, “If you can’t say something nice…….”

Perhaps Lent is the perfect time to think about the seemingly tiny sand pebbles in our own lives. Maybe we can be much more careful about the words we say and also vigilant about how we take the words of others, remembering that others struggle with scattering their own grains just like we do.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

The Elusive State of Balance

Posted on by Wendy
For living things to grow and prosper, they need a good balance of sun and rain.
For living things to grow and prosper, they need a good balance of sun and rain.

My daughter had two tennis matches last Saturday. Since we had so many cancelled this season due to rain or ice, the only way to fit two in was to schedule them both on the same day. One was at 10:00 and one was at 11:00. It was a delightful day, not a cloud in the sky. The high was 72 degrees. It was not too hot and not too cold. The weather was perfect.

It was so comfortable outside that when my hubby and I ran home for lunch, I changed into shorts. We ended up being at the tennis courts until 3:00. It wasn’t until we got home that we realized that we had fried like bacon. We all were sunburned.

The perfect breeze and temperature had lulled us into believing that we didn’t need sunscreen. After all, it wasn’t hot and my family has been blessed with an olive skin tone. We rarely burn; but we are also meticulous about sunscreen when we are going to be outside for a while.

This particular spring season has had much more rain than sun and we were still sporting our winter white skin. We now have the sunburn to prove it. We had no business sitting out in the sun all day with no protection, but since we had longed for a warm sunny day for so long, we were complacent. Too much sun is dangerous.

But, isn’t that the case with just about everything in our lives? A little wine, a little cheesecake, an occasional Coke are all fine. The problem is that humanity very rarely gets the state of balance right.

We eat too much. We drink too much. We work too much. There are people who run too much and have to have joints replaced. Moderation seems to escape us much of the time.

Why is that, I wonder? Perhaps it’s because we have an inherent need for more. We want ten more minutes of sleep, or just another hour at the pool, or just one more bite. But, it’s never really enough. Balance can be really hard to attain.

We have family, friends, work, exercise, hobbies, and a long list of other things that we would like to fit into twenty-four hours in any given day. We also have to sleep sometime.

I think maybe this is where prayer comes in and a right relationship with God. When we look to the Trinity, we find perfect balance, so much so, that the founders of this country based our government on it. The Bible is full of stories of people who get their priorities out of whack and the disaster that inevitably follows. But, there are also stories of people who repent, turn back to God and get it right. There is plenty of instruction there, if we are willing to seek it.

Prayer can also keep us in balance. When we begin our day talking to God and listening for answers, then we are more likely stay on track the entire day. When we always keep our eyes on Him first, then we can keep the balance in our lives that He intended.

We can be at peace and not get sunburned. I think that is a plan worth pursuing. What do you think?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Leaves and Gnome Doors

Posted on by Wendy
This little gnome door reminds me of the things that matter most.
This little gnome door reminds me of the things that matter most.

Last weekend my hubby and I decided it was time to do some spring raking. We always put that particular chore off because we have dozens of hardwoods that produce thousands of leaves, maybe even millions. Some people rake their leaves as they fall, not us, we wait until the spring. I read somewhere that leaving them in place is good for the grass. It sounds reasonable.

We finally got going and got into a groove. Hubby and I were in the front and our son was raking in the back. We had about half of the front yard done, when my son approached his dad with a picture on his phone. It was a gnome door he found somewhere on the internet. He wanted to make one for one of our trees. He had found the perfect spot to put one in our backyard.

Now my sweet husband has a fascination for gnomes. Who knows why? Can you guess what he did?

He put down the rake. He and my son gathered up wood. Some kind of power tools were involved and at some point, I smelled spray paint.

I continued the yard work, solo, for a good while longer before I called it an afternoon. But, I chuckled to myself the entire time. I live with a bunch of right-brained, creative people. I have learned that when they get inspired, for whatever reason, it’s best to let them go with my blessing.

There was a time when I would have been upset that we didn’t get the leaves raked. We had work to do. It wasn’t time to play. Didn’t we owe it to our neighbors to have our lawn raked? What would people say?

But, years of prayer and acceptance and simply traveling around the sun enough times, have taught me that the creative things are the things that matter most. The father and son time matters way more than raking leaves ever could.

I seriously doubt there is any more creative field in the entire world than the imagination of a child. When God entrusted this child to me and all of his gifts, didn’t He also expect me and my husband to nurture his gifts?

Father and son spent several hours on the gnome door and moss was added for a walkway and it turned out beautifully. I halfway expected a gnome to come walking out. My son couldn’t wait to show me and I couldn’t wait to take pictures.

The leaves still litter the front yard. But, I can see the little gnome door from my kitchen sink when I do dishes. I can see it from the kitchen table. I can see it from my bathroom window when I’m upstairs and it makes me smile. It reminds me of the things that matter and the things that don’t. It reminds me to treasure my loved ones as well as their gifts. It reminds me to be intentional.

I learned a lot from that little gnome door. Maybe you can too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

When the World is Foggy

Posted on by Wendy
When our world gets shrouded in fog, we don't have to fear. We can just slow down and trust.
When our world gets shrouded in fog, we don’t have to fear. We can just slow down and trust.

Yesterday morning, our area was under a fog warning. Every radio station was talking about it. The Weather Channel App, had a warning about it. My thirteen-year-old son finally asked, during our commute to school, “What’s the big deal about the fog?”

His artist mind thought it was cool to look at and I agreed with him. I explained to him that the problem with fog is that people don’t like to slow down. We don’t like to plan ahead and leave home early. We don’t like to be inconvenienced in any way. So, we leave for work at the same time and travel at the same speed, even though we can’t see clearly, and we crash.

That explanation seemed to satisfy him. When I returned home, I got my camera to try to capture some of the foggy images around me. They really were quite beautiful and the fog and its beauty as well as its inconveniences, continued to play out in my head.

Faith and fog seem to be close cousins to me. Both are a beautiful. Both require us to slow down and watch and sometimes wait. Both can cover all the imperfections in the world around us. Fog covers them physically while faith covers them spiritually. They both force us to keep moving ahead towards our destination slowly, even when we can barely see what lies ahead.

A few months ago, my hubby and I were having a really tough week. It was one thing after another. In desperation, I sent an e-mail to our pastor, asking him for prayer. I loved his response so much that I wrote it down.

“We can never travel though enemy darkness beyond the headlights shown by Christ. Deep breath of Holy Spirit. Next step. Just the next step. He is with you.” Dick Hoard

I immediately felt better. I think his message is perfect for foggy times too. There are simply times in our lives when we can’t see a thing. Our world is shrouded in fog. Whether we decide to let that fog be frightening like the fog used in a scary movie or more enchanting like fog used at a prom, is up to us.

We can slow down, breathe in the Holy Spirit and take one step at a time, staying within the headlights shown by Christ, resting in the knowledge that we are loved and there is a plan, or we can panic and hit the gas and take our chances.

Maybe Lent is an ideal time to think about the foggy areas of our lives. Where do we need to slow down and let Christ shine His light? I find that when we ask, He will show up and His light never dims.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Smiling in the Rain

Posted on by Wendy
Vacuuming this little pin up turned my day around.
Vacuuming up this little pin turned my day around.

It seems like it’s been raining here in Georgia forever. It’s been a very wet winter. My mama says she thinks we’re going to mold. Yesterday began wet and dreary. I had two teens that decided they would pick that particular morning to argue with each other and me and to complain incessantly about life in general.

I’m well aware that is perfectly normal behavior for kids that age, but their attitude along with the weather was on this normally optimistic gal’s very last nerve. Furthermore, I really needed to vacuum, (think over a week), but my hubby was supposed to work on our vacuum cleaner and hadn’t gotten around to it.

I know this all sounds like whining and truthfully, it is. I have so much to be thankful for. We are all well, and have plenty to eat, and a house to live in, and electricity, and hot water, and, and, and… But, I sometimes forget and I get lost in my own little pity party and moment of despair. Maybe you do too?

I sat down on the kitchen floor and disassembled the vacuum cleaner myself. It wasn’t necessarily something I couldn’t do, just something I didn’t want to do. I finally got it back together and up and running. I vacuumed and prayed. I find that God often shows up in the seemingly mundane.

I prayed about the crummy weather and my matching mood. I prayed about my kids and for guidance from God in guiding them. I prayed for God to show Himself, acknowledging that sometimes He doesn’t.

As I prayed, a scenario came to mind. Sometimes I feel like God is like a parent teaching a child to ride a bike without the training wheels. He runs along behind us, holding onto the seat. We pedal gleefully knowing He is there. But, at some point, He lets go because we have learned to ride on our own. He knows we can do it and He’s never far away.

In the beginning of our faith walk, we become frightened much more easily, and like the child on the bike with no training wheels, we may bobble and fall. He will always be there to help us up.

But, I think His goal may be for us to be able to walk in faith and not to need constant reassurance from Him. We learn to do that from Christian community, prayer time and reading the Bible regularly. That’s how we become strong. That’s how we help others along the way.

As the scenario worked itself out in my mind, during my prayer time, I felt much better. I knew a blog post had been born. Suddenly, the vacuum cleaner sucked up something big, under my daughter’s bed. Wearily, I turned it off and checked the receptacle.

In it was a smiley face pin and immediately a song from youth group camp fires, popped into my mind. “Smile! Don’t you know God loves you? Come to think of it, I love you too. Take the time to smile at someone else, before you’re through, someone will be smiling back at you! Bom! Bom! Bom!” Then it goes faster.

That song always makes me smile and so did that pen. There’s some simple wisdom there. God loves us and in the end, that’s all that really matters. Maybe you needed a reminder today too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Rushing the Seasons

Posted on by Wendy
When we bloom in the right season, things work out beautifully.
When we bloom in the right season, things turn out beautifully.

When I took a walk yesterday, I saw a clump of daffodils completely in bloom. I would normally be cheered to see them. They are always an early announcement that spring is close by. Unfortunately, it’s only February 12th. It’s supposed to be in the twenties this weekend and then only a high in the forties for a few days. Sadly, I don’t think those daffodils will survive. They weren’t made for winter weather.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m always ready for spring. I am not a fan of winter. I can’t stand being cold and all of the layers and coats required for me to be warm are just a huge inconvenience. I was telling someone the other day about how I was longing for spring. Never mind the fact that our winter has been incredibly mild this year. I’m ready for the next season.

Those daffodils got me to thinking about what happens when we rush into the next season, before we fully finish our current one. We too, can get frostbitten like those tender blooms.

Think about it, when we are in a dark season of mourning or loss and we don’t allow ourselves the full amount of time it takes to heal, we sometimes do things like rush into a new relationship, or a new job, or impulsively sell our house, or get a new dog; (this list is close to endless.) We often find that as time passes, we regret those decisions and we most likely would not have made them, had we given ourselves some time and space to finish the dark season completely.

No one likes a dark season, but to get past it, we have to let it fully run it’s course and allow God to heal us. We have to wait.

Sometimes a season of growth is equally frustrating. We are ready to get going and do big things, but God wants to grow us more before we move. When we get impatient and move before we should, we often falter or fail at what we were attempting. God’s timing is different from ours. Waiting takes obedience, but it also builds faith.

I’ve always loved the Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. “There’s a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

The early daffodils are a reminder that we really need to appreciate and respect our current season, whatever it is. We don’t have to like it, but we need to completely finish it before we can move confidently healed and prepared for the next. God will let us know when it’s time and grace and faith will sustain us along the way.

Because when we wait on God, we are never disappointed. He always has big things planned.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂