"Don't wait for crisis before change"
In a moment of weakness, I went to McDonald's. As I pull up to the drive thru, of course there are two huge lines. I ordered a sweet tea and two sausage McMuffin's and mentally get frustrated that the sweet tea is $1.07. That seven cents means now I can't pay with cash because who wants 93 cents of change? Then to top it off, I pull up to get my sweet tea and it turns out they poured unsweetened. I was ready to explode but I received a gift instead. The gift of perspective. One of the strongest people I know is a child who was diagnosed with epidermolysis bullosa or "butterfly skin". This causes blistering of the skin and is a disease they have yet to find a cure for. Each morning, it can take up to 2 hours to wrap his wounds in bandages. He has difficulty walking because of the pain caused by the wounds behind his legs. The exterior light of the sun and the interior building lights hurt his eyes. It hurts to eat because of blistering in his esophagus. The best treatment is to use medication to help with the constant pain. Click this link to watch a 1 min. video to gain even more perspective. Yet despite his circumstances, he has a smile on his face. He has a love for people. He is always gentle. He has an energy and presence that people gravitate towards. There is not a difficult situation that perspective can't help you get through. How many times have you unraveled over something trivial? Whether your stuck in traffic, wishing your kids would stop saying they're bored, or they mess up your order at McDonald's, don't wait for crisis to make a change. In your next difficult situation, stop, think of something you're a grateful for, and gift yourself some perspective. If this blog post spoke to you or helped you gain perspective, join me in paying it forward by making a donation to Debra of America to help with research, programs, and services or by retweeting to create awareness.
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According to Urban Dictionary, a troll is, "One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument." Fortunately, when I think of troll, I have an entirely different meaning/experience. In 2006, I was a freshman in college and was playing in my first ever collegiate game. It was a tournament that was four hours from home and my projected playing time was ZERO min. After the game I looked up and saw my step-dad in the stands by himself...or so I thought. As I got closer, he pulls from behind his back, a troll with pink hair from the early 90's. He said, "It was mom because she couldn't make the game". My first thought was, how many people saw him sitting alone with a troll? Did he buckle it into the front seat on the four hour drive? Bob Goff said, "I used to want to fix people, but now I just want to be with them." I don't recall my stepdad missing a single game in my 4 year career. Troll in hand or not, just being there mattered to me.
Who are you most available for? Are you being available for the right people? Whether you carry a troll around with you on a 4 hour car ride or just giving someone a quick call, challenge yourself this week to be available to everyone you encounter. |