Friday, January 29, 2010

Friday...

As the snow blows across our lawn, I'm trying not to lose perspective. As all winters, this time is only a season... Even though spring brings me more joy than I could verbally express, I recognize that the joy over spring deepens because of winter's harsh backdrop. Without the contrast, we would take the beauty of life for granted.

During a morning conversation with a dear and wise woman (my mom) :) we reminded ourselves that all of life is about perspective--choosing to focus on the "have's" and not the "have-not's." Gratitude isn't about circumstances, but the position of our hearts.

I haven't seen my husband since Wednesday night, and there's a strong possibility, contingent on the weather, that I won't see him again tonight. But I'm focusing on the positive here. First, he has a job: many don't. He's a hard-worker and provider for his family: many aren't. The times apart are minimal, as he never has to travel for his job: many do. And thankfully, we have such a relationship between us that it matters whether he is gone or not: many don't share that depth.

Mom and I were discussing a story that exemplified this very issue. Of course, we couldn't remember the whole of the story, but the message was the same. A man had been robbed. After his money was taken, he deliberated about the event, choosing to focus on the positive aspects of the crime. First off, the only thing taken from him had been his wallet: he still had his life. And allow he had become the victim of crime, he was grateful that he was the one who had been robbed from and not the one doing the robbing.

So, yes, life can become overwhelmed with injustices, disappointments, and suffering, but we can't control those circumstances. What we can focus on changing is our perspective. In response, this Friday, I choose to celebrate.

1 comment:

  1. As a note of clarification, I am not equating my husband's absence as any kind of suffering or hardship. Rather, I was using it as a simple example of how we can maintain the proper perspective on life--even the trivial matters. Often times, my complaints come from insignificant circumstances. The whole of life--what really matters--has very little to do with this life.

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