Jon Gordon says, "Life is a gift, not an obligation." In many cases that gift is taken away too soon. This was so evident in the case of the Boston Marathon on Mon., April 15, 2013. To my knowledge it's not known who woke up that day and decided to place 2 bombs close to the finish line. Last night was my last time to give an inspirational speech to our National Charity League. I was to continue to draw inspiration from the Positive Dog by Jon Gordon. Last night my idea beforehand was to look at this tragedy in light of a "positive dog". Earlier in the day I shared this idea w/ my dental hygienist. At first, she thought I was nuts! Then I explained to her that when looking @ the footage I noticed how may complete strangers ran to the aide of others! In this world God gives us "free will". That day began with "someone" or group deciding to "feed their negative dog" @ the cost of maiming and taking lives of other innocent people. Jon tells us daily we can look at ourselves as the main character in our own movie. What movie are you living, he asks? A horror, comedy, drama, or possibly documentary film? Monday we had someone/group who chose to star in a REAL horror film.They took this liberty with the intention of hurting, killing and changing other people's lives forever! Incredibly sad. However, we also had many, many people who, though they--not by choice-- ended up in this horror film, ran to render aide to those struck by the bombs. There definitely was a majority who made the quick decision to do all they could to reach out and help those in need. There was GREAT fear present during this turn of events. A fear which could have completely paralyzed everyone. Instead, many people moved forward in "faith"! They didn't "have to" render aide, they genuinely wanted to and "got to". People chose to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
My heart aches for the ALL the families who lost loved ones in this horrific tragedy. Some were at the race to cheer on a friend or loved one. They were at the end of the race giving of their time to uplift, inspire, encourage, cheer and have a positive impact on the lives of others running the race! While doing so, their own lives were either ripped away or bodies changed forever! Fair? NO! Life will not be easy for the survivors. It will take time to get back on track. It's definitely our turn to do our absolute best to stand by, listen to and encourage and support them to move forward with their healing. Help them move on in faith, not fear.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Challenges or Opportunities
Last night I gave a tiny inspirational speech at a meeting. Before and after speaking to a group I pray for God's help for organizing my thoughts, relaying a clear message, staying calm and most of all that my words positively touch at least 1 person in the room. In this case the group is all women with teenage daughters working together in a charity organization.
Currently I'm reading parts of a book called Positive Dog by Jon Gordon to the group. I read a bit aloud giving some examples and insight along the way. Last night I chose the "Challenges or Opportunities" chapter. In a nutshell the Positive Dog revolves around--while in a shelter-- an ole Dog Bubba giving the benefits of having a positive outlook on life to a younger dog named Matt. The Challenges chapter begins with Bubba saying "We all face challenges in our lives". Its our perspective that decides the outcome. He says, "We can choose to see adversity as a challenge or an opportunity." Isn't that the truth! I was reminded of a book entitled Failing Forward which is chalk full of successful people who encountered a slue of adversity before they were successful. Everything from death of family members, poor business decisions, cancer. While dealing with adversity, people like Truett Cathy (Chick-Fil-A), Mary Kay Ash, and Sergio Zyman (master mind of New Coke), looked for opportunity to turn their misfortune into fortune!
I shared how this rings true with the parenting journey. We all will continually face"parenting adversity". When faced with the hard times, we don't give up! Sometimes we struggle with how to deal with a situation. Sometimes we may say things we wish we hadn't. Sometimes we may have to apologize. There's such beauty in forgiveness. We must always keep our eye on the big picture. We ALL will be faced with hard times in this life. NO ONE is immune. It's something we ALL have in common.However, we ALL also have a decision with how we react to a given situation, tragedy or crisis. I love the questions that Bubba gives Matt when dealing with adversity. He says ask yourself, " What can I learn from this experience? How can I grow from it? What do I do now?" Of course when in the thick of it, you may not be able to answer all these questions. I believe, sometimes we are initially paralyzed in a given tough situation. We need time to digest. Time to mourn. As time goes by, we CAN choose to answer the questions. Your future success depends on it. Success includes learning from past experiences and NOT repeating the same mistakes. Growing positively from tough situations. Sometimes easier said than done!
Quote from Failing Forward-Believe you have the potential to overcome any problems and misfortunes. All you have to do is learn to fail forward.
Bubba ends his converstation with Matt by telling him when faced with the challenge of living in the shelter, he decided to use it as an opportunity to help others. He doesn't know if someone will ever adopt an ole dog like him. But while he's waiting he's making the best of his time by giving back to and helping others.
Currently I'm reading parts of a book called Positive Dog by Jon Gordon to the group. I read a bit aloud giving some examples and insight along the way. Last night I chose the "Challenges or Opportunities" chapter. In a nutshell the Positive Dog revolves around--while in a shelter-- an ole Dog Bubba giving the benefits of having a positive outlook on life to a younger dog named Matt. The Challenges chapter begins with Bubba saying "We all face challenges in our lives". Its our perspective that decides the outcome. He says, "We can choose to see adversity as a challenge or an opportunity." Isn't that the truth! I was reminded of a book entitled Failing Forward which is chalk full of successful people who encountered a slue of adversity before they were successful. Everything from death of family members, poor business decisions, cancer. While dealing with adversity, people like Truett Cathy (Chick-Fil-A), Mary Kay Ash, and Sergio Zyman (master mind of New Coke), looked for opportunity to turn their misfortune into fortune!
I shared how this rings true with the parenting journey. We all will continually face"parenting adversity". When faced with the hard times, we don't give up! Sometimes we struggle with how to deal with a situation. Sometimes we may say things we wish we hadn't. Sometimes we may have to apologize. There's such beauty in forgiveness. We must always keep our eye on the big picture. We ALL will be faced with hard times in this life. NO ONE is immune. It's something we ALL have in common.However, we ALL also have a decision with how we react to a given situation, tragedy or crisis. I love the questions that Bubba gives Matt when dealing with adversity. He says ask yourself, " What can I learn from this experience? How can I grow from it? What do I do now?" Of course when in the thick of it, you may not be able to answer all these questions. I believe, sometimes we are initially paralyzed in a given tough situation. We need time to digest. Time to mourn. As time goes by, we CAN choose to answer the questions. Your future success depends on it. Success includes learning from past experiences and NOT repeating the same mistakes. Growing positively from tough situations. Sometimes easier said than done!
Quote from Failing Forward-Believe you have the potential to overcome any problems and misfortunes. All you have to do is learn to fail forward.
Bubba ends his converstation with Matt by telling him when faced with the challenge of living in the shelter, he decided to use it as an opportunity to help others. He doesn't know if someone will ever adopt an ole dog like him. But while he's waiting he's making the best of his time by giving back to and helping others.
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