Accentuate Serenity

“The country is going to hell in a hand basket”, “These kids today, they have no respect”, “No one knows how to drive around here”, “The world is such an awful place these days”, “People are jerks”, “It just isn’t right what’s happening today”, “no, no, no”; just a few comments of negativity that are so much easier to hold onto when one embraces the life of negativity. Negativity is that easy and wide and vacant road that so many people, so many of us, chose to travel when stressed, helpless, and emotionally unsettled. Negativity is like a vast open brown dirt filled desert who’s heat dries up and burns the flesh, ripping moisture from the body, leaving it miserable, sad, painful, lonely.

Negatively is often formed in the shadow of habits, not seen, that creep into our being from our family, our parents, our spouse, our friends, our coworkers, those we surround ourselves with, those who walk our journey. People who live in bars believe everyone drinks, those who lie believes everyone is playing a scam, and those who are negative believe all are hopeless.

The road to peace and serenity is not filled with negative paths, which are really just the detours away from inner wellbeing. The road to serenity is one of choice and attitude and beliefs of hope and love and joy, no matter what the condition of the terrain along the journey. Florence Wedge wrote, “Much less turmoil would batter our soul if we resolved, from this moment on, to think and speak on an upbeat, positive, hopeful note. The world has enough negativists already without our joining the dismal ‘no-no’ club”. Makes me wonder how often I sign my name to this club. How often do you sign your name to the club?

I encourage you my friend and reader to accentuate the positive, realize you are never too old or too late to change your mindset, belief system, and attitude, embracing the attitude that thorn bushes have roses, not that rose bushes have thorns. How often have you looked at the thorns, ignoring the beauty of the rose? God offers you daily resurrections of mind and attitude, if you are willing to see, hear, taste, and smell them. Walk a good journey, and accentuate the positive of your journey, of God’s journey for you, in your life. I pray you embrace God over the world. Amen.


(The writings in this post are random thoughts and observations and are NEVER intended as professional or personal advice. Take what works and leave the rest. For information on mental health and/or substance abuse help, visit http://www.rodneyvalandra.com and refer to the links page.)

Comments

  1. KathyJuly 1, 2010 at 9:24 AM

    Awesome post Rodney. My struggle is that the more positive I become, the more obvious the negative in the world is, then I begin to focus on that and next thing ya know...I sound like everyone else; saying look how negative everything is! Great reflective stuff! Love it.

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