A few years ago, I was fortunate enough to be involved in a motor vehicular accident which left me with a substantial amount of injuries to recover from. And yes, I did say fortunate. Let’s just say, the primary “stars” of that accident were my little red sedan car, another compact vehicle, and a HUGE semitruck. To say the least, I was very fortunate to have escaped with my life and some injuries—thanks to my guardian angels above.
Sometimes, these life changing events can be a great blessing in our lives if we allow them to be. When we focus our energy on the positives, it empowers us to see past the negatives so that we can recognize those “disguised blessings”. I know, at times, it may not always be easy to find those little gold nuggets of positivity, but I assure you that they are there.
You may have to take a step back or look a little harder to change your viewpoint.
I think most of us have heard/read, at some point, Winston Churchill’s famous quote: “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
I love this quote! Having been an optimist all my life, it has always been simple for me to visualize the opportunities and blessings in each difficult experience of my life. I have never been one to dwell on negative thoughts. Optimism is a choice, and it’s up to us to choose if we want it in our lives.
Every now and then, I tend to look back at past events and think about how likely it would have been for me to “survive” such experiences without having that optimistic perspective on life. I truly believe that living a life filled with positivity and optimism are essential in living a happy and meaningful life. There are few other essentials as well, such as gratitude, love, kindness, humility…etc. Anyhow, we can discuss those in a later post.
Trust me when I say that life becomes so much more abundant and easier when we opt for a positive state of mind.
Well, remember the accident from earlier? I mentioned that I had sustained a few injuries which resulted in me having a couple surgeries. One of the surgeries performed was on my foot, specifically my right hallux. It was completely shattered! Seeing the x-rays preop, I was surprised that my orthopedic surgeon was able to save that digit. Postoperative, I was told that given the extent of damage, I would not be able to wear shoes with high heels anymore. Say WHAAAT?!
For those that know me, not wearing heels was definitely not an option for me. A long time ago, I dubbed myself a “shoe connoisseur”. I LOVE a good pair of heels! The higher, the better for this petite 5 feet 3 inch shoe-loving gal. So imagine the look on my face after hearing such news. I think my jaw dropped to the floor then.
Granted, this was a minor issue compared to my more serious injuries, but I was determined to keep a positive attitude. About nine months after my accident, I was able to wear three-and-a-half inch heels with no problem. Another few months passed, and I was back in my favorite four-inch heels. Yay! That’s the power of positive thinking (and prayer), people.
I had never allowed for any negative thoughts to infiltrate my mind during my recovery period. I simply could not afford to have such thoughts. You see, I never envisioned myself not being able to do the things that I was told I would not be able to do. Instead, I saw myself performing every task as I did prior to the accident. I recovered much quicker than expected. Plus, I was able to perform multiple tasks that were deemed unattainable for me post-surgery.
During my “vacation”at the hospital, I remember being asked by a nursing staff how I was managing to stay so positively cheerful, despite my injuries.
I told her that I was alive, breathing, and talking; everything else was just little hurdles in my path.
My recovery was one of the toughest times in my life, but my optimism never wavered or faltered. I knew that it was not going to be easy, yet I held on. There were times, when I needed to take a step back to remember the big picture. Thank goodness I did, because the experience allowed me to grow tremendously and gave me a clearer perspective on life.
Since then, I have become much more grateful for every day that I am able to wake up and breathe in that wonderful earthly air. Every morning, I tell myself (and my family), “Today is going to be a good day, and it’s up me/us to make it great. There are no bad days–just bad experiences or circumstances that are awaiting for me/you to find the good that’s hidden in there somewhere.”
