Yesterday one of the air conditioners in our home stopped working. It got really hot and we all had to move to one side of the house to sleep. My husband called the repair company this morning and was told that they would not be able to come out until tomorrow morning. I immediately flipped to a state of irritation and worry. My elderly mother lives with us and a few minutes later I went into her room to check on her and to make sure she wasn’t too hot. She was sound asleep and Bliss was laying next to her sound asleep. They looked so peaceful and I realized that they were not the least concerned about the situation. It was then that I realized that I choose to look at these circumstance from a totally different and much more positive perspective. I decided to change my thoughts and be grateful for having one working air conditioner. As soon as I pivoted away from what I did not have, to what I did have; I felt great relief. I also was able to see a couple of interim solutions that evaded me when I was looking at what I did not have. I covered the upper windows with newspaper and also the french doors and found a fan to bring cooler air into my Mom’s room. As I sit in our house right now at 4PM (it’s 111 degrees outside now); it is very comfortable inside our house. I am totally amazed by how changing my perspective allowed me to see alternatives that weren’t visible when I was looking at what I did not have.
While searching for a photo for this post, I found this photo of Sugar, one of our Pomeranian’s. This photo really represents the message and spirit of this post. As you can see from the expression on her face, she is very content while snuggling up to my husband’s feet. The flip side of this perspective could have been a rather smelly choice.
What do you choose to focus on?
