What is Perspective?

Remember that phrase, "Everything from soup to nuts?"  I have no idea how that began but it's one of those interesting American idioms that refer to a broad plethora of items.  Well that is the fashion of many of my posts.  The subjects wander from recipes, to happy posts when I focus on somebody who has touched and changed my life for good, my writing,  to sexual slavery, human entrapment and ways that we can educate people and help prevent those evils.

I am writing another book called "Thrive Don't Just Survive."  It will be a compilation of my thoughts, ideas, hopes, and fears.  This book has taken all 56 years of my life to write.  It's an idea that has taken me through being a babe with virtually no immune system, to a young woman in multiple car accidents, through death of my beloved Papa (I did NOT understand how the sun even came up without him in the world), death of my beloved Nyle (27 years of love and growth with my darling), breast cancer...more car accidents (including one that impacted all three of my family members badly and permanently).

There are many more challenges than the ones that I've listed above but I watched a documentary once that said, "People who claim to have more than one car accident, cancer more than once in a family,  have just plain too much tragedy, are probably looking for a way to scam the public."  My daughter and I laughed so hard that we cried.  I guess we are scammers and just didn't know it! 

Our girls (Note that I said OUR girls.  I will include Nyle in my statements to the day that I am reunited with him) are endlessly positive.  They march through the world spreading cheer and "Splashing in the sunshine," each and every day.  People are absolutely stunned when they hear the challenges we have faced as a family.

Yet it is through those challenges and times of barely hanging on, (Apparently there is a reason for the statement "Hang in there.") we have learned amazing Master Classes of ways and means of facing the worst that life can hand you!  Thrive Don't Just Survive is the product of those "Master Classes" of life.

I love the little story about the Mom who is trying to teach her little girl perspective.  She marches her daughter to the window and says, "Honey look out and tell me what you see?" 

"Mama this window is disgusting, it's dirty and there are dead bugs on it." 

The Mama holds tightly to her patience and says, "Now honey look THROUGH the window and tell me what you see?" 

"Well there is the next door puppy.  Look how cute he is wiggling his tail...the tail he barely has.  Oh the grass is so green, and the sky so blue?"

"That right my dear, both things are right, the windows are dirty, but there is beauty to be found by looking out past the window.  In life it's all about where we CHOOSE to place our focus."

It IS possible to use perspective, a highly under used word and idea in my way of thinking, to change "The Darkest Night Into Day," as the old hymn says.  Stuck in bed sick?  What can you use those quiet hours for?  Can you use those "quiet" hours to call friends or family?  Can you send a letter to someone who needs a lift?  Social Media is nice, but it's absolutely WONDERFUL to receive an old school card, or note in the mail!  Maybe you are so sick that you just sleep.  None of us EVER sleep enough these days. 

In each and every day of our lives we will find "bugs on the window."  There will also be cute puppies, and green grass, and an azure sky over our heads.  Where do you wish to focus?