Surviving setbacks and heartbreaks allows us to mature, grow and feel grateful – IF we know how to embrace them.
Frankly, I’d prefer to remain a tad immature if it
meant I could avoid certain setbacks and inevitable pain. But I’m realistic enough to know those times will come – often when we least expect them.
The trick for me is not to dilute the good times by fearing the other shoe will drop at any moment while I’m basking in the sun.
“God whispers to us in our pleasures….but shouts in our pain,” said C. S. Lewis who noted our troubles carry multiple benefits. They grab our attention when we’re ignoring something important and it’s only when we feel the heat that we begin to make necessary changes.
Another tricky part it not to let your hard times make you bitter and negative. You don’t have to be grateful for your troubles,. but you can be thankful in spite of them. There’s an old hymn we used to sing in the First Presbyterian Church of West Point, MS. It went:“Count your Blessings, Name them One by One.” Becoming a thankful person can be the healthiest change we can make in our lives and studies show gratitude can make us more resistant to illness and stress.
List all your blessings in one column and your troubles/negatives in another, bet you’re feeling better already! See ya Saturday!!!
What a great idea Norma. Is bubba in the left or right column?
Sittin’ here counting our blessings. Me and George.
God is whispering to us.
Thankful.
Hi,
Bubba? Hey, I know lots of Bubbas.! Here in the South, everyone knows a Bubba or two. Did you mean Bernie? He is the left column I believe.
You will like him. Even in an e mail, he is comforting.
Living in the present, not trying to control the future or correct the past, has been my lesson. Oprah said, “forgiveness is accepting the past can’t be changed.”
A young man that grew up with our son, they were like brothers. We saw him at a Kenny Rogers chicken restaurant one night. He was counting our ones and change to pay for his dinner. We asked him to join us and offered to buy him dinner……..we thought he was short on cash. He said he had to run, friends were coming over to his apt. Two hours later he was arrested a by the DEA, FBI, state and local,police in a huge drug raid. He was in jail on a million dollar bail, cash only. Our son was in college in Tuscaloosa at the University of Alabama . He stayed a while, when sufficiently humbled, his parents helped with a good attorney. Friends and family went to bat, wrote letters and he got timed served, youthful offender status, probation and community service. We were all so happy and relieved. He decided to do
one more drug deal, they were waiting on him, he ended up losing the good deal, served three years in a Fed prison in Arkansas. Now he is the responsible adult we all thought he would be. He had to go a great distance out of his way in order to come back a short distance correctly.
I have a visual of driving down a nice paved road, then going off road down the steep mountain, over creek beds, around boulders, and then finding the
way back to the paved road. He need that experience to complete his life’s lessons. Sometimes like my sons friend we bring these to ourselves, some times God sends them. We develop the qualities, character, empathy, whatever we need to help complete our growth and lessons. I have to admit somedays I ask God to please don’t make me learn any more lessons today!
Sorry this was so long.
I should have clarified, I feel that my ouchy boo, boos.( Bullous pempigoid blisters,) have caused me to go off road, I am back on the paved road, but when I was going off road, it was a rough and rocky trip. Maybe you even feel like that. I learned a lot, met the most amazing people, and found that the ability to stand my ground, research and made educated decisions was the greatest gift my parents ever gave me. It has served me well.
Hugs xoxo
Norma
Emily, looks like you have another friend named Norma. Today, Bubba is at the top of my blessings list, tomorrow he could possibly move to the other column. He knows you and the other girls are close behind, so he needs to stay in my good graces. Looking forward to “girl time” tomorrow!
Wow, two Norma’s . I have never had that happen. Small world.
It is nice to meet you Norma.
Glad you know a Bubba too. That means chances are you are a southerner, by birth or the Grace of God. I do love the South and our whimsical ways. When we faint, we don’t “fall out”, we have a “fading out spell”,
I am sorry I assumed I was the only one, I just usually am. Lol
Hugs,
Norma #2
Spot on with this write-up, I honestly believe
this amazing site needs much more attention. I’ll probably be
returning to see more, thanks for the info!