Not every day can be a
bed of roses and not every day can go our way.
Sometimes it is not just days, but weeks, months and yes, sometimes there
are even years that do not pan out exactly as we wanted.
However, within each
twenty-four hour period we have a chance to make a list of what goes
right.
We have a chance to itemize a
list of ‘good’ things and ‘sweet moments’ as we take a moment to re-tweak our
LINKS.
It is human to think
about what is not going right.
Nevertheless, it can also
be human to be grateful for what DIDN’T GO WRONG.
You have heard the cliché
trail of optimistic thoughts, quotes, and ideas about being the optimist and
thinking positively. You have been told
to look at the glass half-full.
You have always heard ‘things
could be worse.’
While this is true, it is
more difficult to reflect on that when you feel as if you are grasping on
something to hold onto.
Let us take apart the
chain of LINKS of what we know – which is everything you have read above this
line.
Now, let us experiment a
little to see how we can shift our perspective a bit to RETHINK THE SWEET
LINKS.
When we were children, we
always had things to look forward to….
- School breaks/vacation
- No homework
- No tests
- Longer recess
- Cool stuff to trade with our classmates during lunchtime
- A chance to win (fill in the blank of the game/sport)
- Walking home from school with friends
- The afterschool snack
- The weekend
- Playtime
As adults ------ Where is
this list? Do you have one?
If your answer is that
your list only consists of the weekend and getting off work early or a cheat
day to eat junk food – maybe you need to re-evaluate your list.
As adults, our minds are
filled with responsibility, clutter, and the ‘should do’ list as much as the ‘I’ve
got to do’ list and the greatest sweet spot you can muster up is maybe not
having to do laundry.
This needs to change.
Each day, there is
something to recognize as your sweet link, but the problem is life has become
far too chaotic to notice.
More importantly, as
adults – we do not celebrate little things as much as we should and the deal is
WE SHOULD.
Ask yourself when the
last time was you celebrated the following:
- A string of green lights driving from point A to point B
- Someone actually getting your coffee right
- Your computer did not crash
- Someone let you go ahead of them in line
- No one flipped you off
- A stranger smiled at you
- You didn't see one person take a selfie today
- Every song you heard today you knew all the words to
- The bus or subway was on time or your car started
- The weather, traffic and your immune system cooperated with your social calendar
- No one actually got on your nerves today
- You were able to squeeze out the last of (the toothpaste, shampoo, etc.) to get out of the house
- Your pet or child learned something new
- You learned something new
- You were on time for XYZ
- Your phone battery actually lasted all day
- There was only junk mail and no bills
- There were bills, but you are grateful you have a way to pay them
- The lunch special today just happened to be your favorite
- Your shoes no longer give you a blister
- You laughed today more than once
- You actually remembered what made you laugh to make someone else laugh
- No one actually laughed AT you
- Or maybe they did, but you are in such a good place you can laugh at yourself, too
Moreover, the list can go
on. See how easy that was?
These are the LINKS
within our psyche that can be changed for our own well-being.
However, we have to
recognize that when we get into a bad habit, that we do not adopt it or accept
the bad habit as the only way we know how to live. We have to wake up and see how the little bad
habits become larger bad habits and we allow and give permission for these to
invade our center of who we are.
When we take the
pro-active steps to change them, we improve our own quality of life.
It is when we take that step;
we can SHIFT THE LINK into a new placement within our mental and emotional
processing.
New behavior is always
possible. We can make it simple on
ourselves if we take things in steps to adopt the behavior like bites we chew
on and digest slowly to fully integrate it and adapt.
Once we do that, a new
habit we turn into a positive one becomes a new ritual we design organically by
consciously shifting the perspective.
Sometimes all it takes is
an itemization as we just did. Sometimes
you just need to slow down and think or journal.
Truth is, it is always
there for you – no matter how bad things get.
The sweet links are there
for the savoring (see what I did there?)
Life is not meant to be
spent in a state of bitterness – that is why we were given more senses to
experience.
It is when we choose to
do that, we LINK to the sweet spots of our day – EVERY DAY.
Namaste.
