Monday, June 24, 2013

It could alwyas be worse so it can't be that bad.


Sometimes it's easy to loose track of all the things you have to be grateful for. No matter how many blessings you have you can forget about them during one bad day. But I tend to really focus on my good fortune. But then there are times when too much is going good and I think "this just can't last".

I'm not a "glass half full person" really. But I'm not the "glass half full" kind either. I'm a "There's a glass so if I get thirsty I'm all set" kind of girl. I'm practical. Not a pessimist or an optimist... it's more of a realist.

So when things are going my way I don't forget about all the bad things going on. I focus on the good, realize that things could always be worse and then try to do something about the bad.

Sometimes the bad I try to fix isn't even in my life. For example, we have been blessed to be able to finally move out of our too small home and into the perfect home. It's in a area I love and since we are building we are customizing it as we want (within our budget). But during the excitement of making this huge, life changing purchase natural disasters (tornadoes to be exact) have left many people homeless, not to mention the deaths from the event.

It really upset me. Here I am thrilled about my new home when many people don't' have one to go to. I know, I can't save everyone. But it's hard to be happy for me knowing  how others suffer. So I will stay focused on the positive. My family works hard and is getting a house that finally fits us and we deserve this. But I will also try to do something to not just show I appreciate what I have but to help those who may not have.

We have been doing a lot of volunteer work this summer. Simple things like doing collections, volunteering time, talents. Things that may be small in scale but add up and help.

I look at it as throwing a few extra coins into the karma jar for a rainy day. It helps my conscience and helps others.

So though I never loose sight of my blessings I also try to help make things easier for others so they can find a few blessings themselves.

Maybe my "it can always be worse" attitude isn't what most people would think of as positive but it works. When B spends hours at doctors I think that she walked in there. Some of the kids at the neurologist can't do that. When we disagree over who should have A over a weekend (split custody is a bummer) I think how lucky he is to have two sets of parents who love him so much. When D is acting like a brat and on my nerves I think of how we almost lost her twice (from MRSA and the seizure) and suddenly my patience grows.

It could always be worse. And maybe one day it will be. But as long as I have my kids and my husband... I'm blessed.

So sure, it can always be worse but if it can get worse then it can't be that bad.