This week marked the first week of our daughter’s life. I'm actually writing it with her laying on my chest :) If you want to imagine how I felt on the day she was born, think of the iconic scene in The Lion King when Rafiki raises baby Simba on Pride Rock and all the animals gather around to see the newborn lion. Tears were shed, joy was shared, and there was a rush of pride that went through my body as I held my baby girl for the first time. This blog has to be a letter of gratitude. I can honestly not count the number of people who helped our family in this time of transition.
To my wife, you amaze me! You are strong, beautiful, and already an awesome mom. You are more beautiful now than the day I met you. I am so proud of you and can't wait to continue to build memories with our growing family! The nurses at Dublin Methodist are amazing! They were direct with us when we needed to hear the truth and needed guidance. They were patient when they realized that we were first-time parents. They were positive and reassuring when we were fearful or needed encouragement. If you are a nurse anywhere, I am grateful for all you do! Danah’s mom came and stayed with us during the first four days and allowed us to function like somewhat “normal” humans. She made meals, cleaned, shopped and took our sweet baby girl so we could sleep for a solid 2 hours. Her support during the start of our parenting journey will be something I never forget. To all of you reading this blog. I know many of you sent texts, called, bought us a baby gift, or just sent some love on Facebook. If we haven’t thanked you personally, Danah and I are so grateful for you. The challenge this week is to thank “your people”! You don’t have to have a baby to do this! Be grateful for the people in your life that are there for you when you need them the most. Send them a text. Call them. Realize that you are loved. Hakuna Matata!
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“We need to make the positive so loud that the negative becomes almost impossible to hear.”I seek to be positive each day. The best way to achieve this is to live for others. I have 4 questions on my computer that I read each day that I took from a book I read by Malcolm Gladwell. They are:
Did I do my best to find meaning today? Did I do my best to be happy today? Did I do my best to build positive relationships today? Did I do my best to be fully engaged today? Now, do I achieve these goals every day? No. But what I love about them is that they require nothing of others. I get to choose the outcome of my day no matter what negativity may swirl around my life. Now imagine, if everyone around you asked these same questions. What would your work meeting look like? What would the dinner table look like? What would your classroom look like? What would your basketball team look like? People have joked that I am “Mr. Positivity”. I wonder if they think that I have a pollyanna/ride a unicorn to work everyday life/mindset. Although riding a unicorn to work would be awesome, I go through the same struggles, worries, and negativity as everyone else. I realize that negativity is all around us and is unavoidable. I also think we give negativity too much of our attention. I do work hard to try and make the positive so loud that the negative becomes impossible to hear. This strategy along with the 4 questions listed above can change the way you think and live. My challenge for you today is to amplify positivity. No act of positivity is too small. Let one act of positivity lead to another and let’s work to make these actions so loud that we can’t even hear a whisper of negativity. |