I woke up that morning with all my gratitude and everything, as is my custom, but, things were just off in my house and for a split second, I allowed myself to be ill-at-ease.
The problem with that is that the floodgates open and one itty bitty negative thought turned into a SWELL of negative thoughts and I could hear my heart in the background whispering to me.
The one thing my head and my heart agreed on was "put on some happy music and smile!"
So, that's what I did!
"It isn't necessary for you to accept blame for everything that occurs in life. But just because you don't accept the blame does not mean that you can assign it to someone else. Why give them the control over a situation? Things happen, but it is up to each of us to use these things to our advantage whenever possible and take charge of our lives."
Then, I started thinking of who I could help. You see, I've learned that life sucks sometimes...but it doesn't have to...and one surefire way to make life suck less is to go out and do something nice for someone else. There is ALWAYS someone in a worse situation than you are.
I went to Starbucks and thought about paying for drinks for the people in the line behind me.
Then, I noticed a homeless man in the line a few people ahead of me. He wanted a donut, but I don't think he had enough money to buy it, so he settled on getting coffee. The gentleman in the line in front of him paid for the donut, which made me smile!
I placed my drink order and while I was standing at the bar waiting for it, I noticed the homeless guy over at the condiment stand fixing up his coffee. He had left his donut and his belongings on the table behind me. When nobody was looking, I slipped a $10 under his donut bag on the table and stepped back over to the bar.
I kept thinking, "I hope he sees it and doesn't toss it in the trash when he's done with his donut." I didn't want to turn around and look at him because I didn't want to give myself away...anonymity is a great thing.
I can only assume that he found it because I heard him say, "Today is going to be a blessed day!"
That made me extremely happy!
I also observed his precision in preparing for his breakfast. He sat with his donut and his coffee placed just so on the table and he had a look like he planned to deliberately enjoy every bit of it. He seemed REALLY happy!
Everything that happened prior to that just fell away. I didn't care about anything else.
Complaining is SO easy. It's pretty habitual. Don't fall into the trap.
When shit happens...and we ALL know it does...look for the most immediate opportunity to do something nice for someone else!
Here's a list of options that come to mind:
- Pay for the car behind you in the toll road
- Pay for the car behind you in the drive-thru (thanks Tory Johnson)
- Buy a stranger a coffee at Starbucks (or whatever coffee shop)
- Make a $20 backpack to give to a homeless person
- Call up the utility company and offer to pay something on the bill of an elderly person
- Visit the PayitForward site for other ideas
Life opens up when you do!
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