Could Be Worse

I can be my own worst enemy.  For several days, I was somewhat down about something that happened in my life.  It was anything horribly tragic, but it weighed on my mind a great deal.  I constantly reflected on the “what-ifs” and knew if the situation presented itself again that I would have done several things differently.  But, now it was after the fact and there wasn’t a single thing I could do.  I let this issue weigh on my mind during the day.  I “shoulda, coulda, woulda”. At night I had trouble sleeping.  Then two events in one day made all of my worrisome thoughts disappear.

It started with watching the morning news.  Hundreds of people had started lining up as early as 11:00pm the night before just to be the first in line for potential job openings at the KY State Fair. They interviewed a woman that said she’d been unemployed for over six years.   A man said that he was hoping for some funds to feed his family and have supplies for his baby.  This was disheartening because it wasn’t just a handful of people that were down on their luck.  No, these were hundreds of members of our community who are desperately in need of a job – any job.  Watching the story further made me appreciate the paycheck that I receive on a regular basis and made my issue seem somewhat petty.

Then, a couple of hours later I was talking on the phone with a woman.  She had had some health issues going on and it wasn’t until our phone call that I learned all that was happening.  She had just been diagnosed with breast cancer and was still in shock about all that she was getting ready to endure.  This was someone that was around my age so it could have just as easily been me.  You could tell she was scared, and I knew that even once she beat the disease her life would never be the same.  Here I am pouting over something that really has no effect on my life while this woman has to re-prioritize her entire life.

We may think things are bad in our world – just know they can be so much worse. So often we complain and lose sleep on the small minor things in life instead of focusing on all the blessings that surround us.  That night after I arrived home and lay down to bed, I feel right asleep.  The worries that had lingered every night before were now just a thing of the past.  My worry really wasn’t worth worrying over.  I changed my perspective around and further appreciated the positive things and people that surrounded me.

M.Y. August 2010