"Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life." That's a quote by Walter Anderson. Well, part of a quote actually. Walter was getting a little wordy so I just distilled his words a little bit. There are a lot of Walter Anderson's out there, and I am not sure which one said this. I doubt it was the tax evader, but it might have been the CEO of Parade Magazine. Or one of about ten other famous Walter Anderson's!
To get back to the quote, bad things do happen to all of us. Oftentimes, those things do have a way of shaping our personalities a bit. But, no matter what happens, you ultimately are the one who decides who you are going to be and how you act. So many people want to blame others for their own shortcomings. They blame lying on how they were brought up, or backstabbing "because the person deserved it!" Truly, this is not the case though. God gave all of us choices. We all know right from wrong. The decisions are ours. Same thing with how we treat others and how we view the world. The decisions are ours. My wife died three years ago. It would have been very easy to just go around all depressed and generally be miserable. God knows I felt it for a long time! But that would not have been good for me, my daughters, or my friends. What good would it have done any of us if I walked around miserable? I made a conscious decision to be happy. To find the little things that could make me happy on a daily basis, and to celebrate those things. I go out of my way to do something enjoyable every day. Whether it is enjoying a cup of coffee, playing with Ashleigh, chatting with Maddie, or chit-chatting with my Mom over dinner. I workout hard two times a week, and make sure to read a little bit of fun stuff each day. There are other things I do also. I block people on Facebook who whine and complain and I try to avoid people who bring me down. I also try to avoid working out with people who don't add any effort to their workouts! These are little things, but I find they keep me happy. I honestly believe that God did not put us here to suffer. He also did not put us here to make others miserable. I try to treat all people with at least a modicum of respect, and I try to teach my daughters to do the same. Bad things do happen in life. And occasionally, they happen to good people. Don't let those things define you though. Grow past them! Remember the good times! Forgive those who caused the bad! Celebrate and remember the good times and special moments. And try to forget the pain. I have always had a high tolerance for physical pain. In general, my tolerance is high because I have learned to recognize the pain, and then put it in the back of my mind and ignore it. Focusing on the pain won't help me to function any better. Thus, when I have a choice, I recognize the injury, and then do my best to work around it as if it doesn't exist. I try to do this with emotional pain, too. It is a little bit harder to do with that though. When I think of my wife, I try to remember the good things about her, and try to forget the things that came from her addictions. Life is short. Don't spend time worrying about what you can't change. If something bad has happened. Make certain that it won't happen again to you, but then go on and live your life and not dwell on the past. That is what I am trying to do anyway.
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