I have turned my calendar to the month of May, yea! Spring is finally here, and summer is not too far behind. I've heard that Oklahoma has two seasons, winter and summer with a few days of autumn and spring. Some will be happy that May is here. They are excited about the warm temperatures, flowers blooming, vegetable gardens beginning to grow and birds everywhere. That includes me but, as with many of you, my perspective can (and probably will) change. Soon we will be complaining that it is too hot, pollen is everywhere, the grass needs to be mowed (again!), as well as all the noise the birds make in the morning. Just like that, we become unhappy and pessimistic. As blogger Amy Weatherly says, "Some people could be given an entire field of roses and only see the thorns in it. Others could be given a single weed and only see the wildflower in it. Perception is a key component to gratitude. And gratitude is a key component to joy."
Each day it is our choice as to how we will see the day. Temperatures too hot? Have you forgotten how cold it was in February? Yard needs to be mowed again? If you look around, you can find someone mowing yards who needs money for school in the fall. Pollen everywhere means things are growing, and the birds are just making a "joyful noise" like it says in Psalm 100: "Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing." Psalm 100:1-2 (NRSV).
So, each morning I will choose to have a positive perspective for the day, because "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it," Psalm 118:24 (NRSV). I will look for the roses, not the thorns and find all the wildflowers in the weeds of the day. With a positive perspective, I will feel that my day was successful. I will go to bed that night tired but ready to start the new day.
Tina