Dare to...Count Your Blessings

"The moment one gives close attention to any thing, even a blade of grass it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself." ~Henry Miller

(Photo credit: ecstaticist on Flickr)

The next stop on the Meiji Stewart's ABC writings, is the letter C...and you are invited to count your blessings along with me.

There really is no way to completely count all the blessings that life affords us each and every day. How can you quantify it? I have seen what it is like when someone forgets to pay attention to the blessings that are present all the time. That is where the woe-is-me creeps in, the sense that there is nothing worth doing or seeing or experiencing. That is just plain sad.

So instead of counting my blessings, I choose to be mindful of them.

A few years ago, I was fed up one day. I had had enough. Every single thing that could go wrong seemingly did. I wanted to throw in the towel, drive home and crawl back in bed. And that fed-uppedness spilled over into the whole of my day. Has that ever happened to you? Of course, it has. Your car won't start. You spill your coffee on your new outfit. You drop your daughter off at school and before you leave she realizes that she forgot to bring her pajamas for pajama day and stares at you with that quivering lip {actually happened}.

That one bad event seems to start a chain reaction...or does it?

What I have come to realize is that when I let that first unfortunate event push me over the edge my life has a tendency to spiral out of control. Instead of just laughing about it and chalking it up to just another day in paradise, your day takes a turn for the worst and no amount of resuscitation can salvage it.

Does anyone remember the racetrack ride at Disneyworld? The one with the metal track under the car? I remember when I was a kid that this was one ride I couldn't wait to get on. Perhaps it was becuase I felt so grown up that I would be allowed to drive a car at the tender age of seven even though I couldn't quite reach all the pedals. It felt as if I were going so fast I would crash for sure with the other cars. I thought it was hilarious to weave back and forth and slam into the bar only to be jerked back in the opposite direction. That is what it feels like when I greet the day with negativity and an ain't-no-reason-to-be-happy attitude. My life feels jerked all over the place and while I won't actually crash and burn, I certainly don't feel like I am following the path that I ought.

At the end of every blog post, blog comment, email and the like you may have noticed that I add to my signature, "Enjoy the day." It has become a sort of signature phrase of mine. In fact I find it hard to just write my name...it sort of naturally flows from my fingers. It is in reference to one of my very favorite quotes...

"Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day."

On that day with the car trouble and the coffee stain and the race to the nearest Target to pick up a clearance pair of pajamas for my crying first grader so she wouldn't be left out of a day of pajama wearing fun {actually happened}, I was greeted by a perky sales clerk who was all too chipper for that early in the morning, and didn't she know that I was having the worst kind of day? As she handed me my change she chimed, "Have a great day!" Now, there was no way that she could have known my predicament, but this actually made me mad. How could I possibly have a great day with all that I had to deal with? So how did I react...that was just one more in a line of small papercut sized issues that now felt like a big ol' open sore.

When I stumbled upon the quote, it really hit home with me. Not every day is a great day, and not every day is a bad day. But there is something good in every day and I can enjoy it despite the worst of times. And that resonated with me.

I actively seek a "something good" each day, but what I have found is that I don't really have to search too hard. These "something goods" just seem to find me. Or maybe I am just open to the possiblity that they exist. And lest you think me Pollyanna-ish and my life is all a bed of roses, let me assure you it is not. It is just that I choose to count my blessings.

While I don't actively "count" my blessings {as there are certainly more than I can count}, I do believe in being open to the possibility that there is "something good" in every day.

What is a "something good" that has come into your life in the last week? Don't forget to recall the little things that you may overlook...and count your blessings. Do tell!

Check It Out::The Jungle of Life

Please go and read the link above. My friend Lance has a very inspirational blog called the Jungle of Life. A few weeks ago he gave me my "something good" for the day when he asked me if my quote about opportunity would be his Sunday Thought of the Day. I am excited that he has chosen to honor me in this manner. Lance is a great friend whom I met solely through his blog and I treasure his insights. I have been so moved by the things that he has written and the authors and artists and other inspirational people that he has opened my eyes to. I encourage you to find a "something good" in the The Jungle of Life.

Enjoy the day!