Blog Looking on the Bright Side

Looking on the Bright Side

Prior to the arrival of our daughter two weeks ago, I had spent time trying to mentally refresh myself on what to expect with a newborn in the house. Admittedly, one of the selfish concerns I focused on was the lack of sleep I would experience for at least the first few weeks while changing diapers and helping tend to a hungry little human.

While lamenting this idea, though, I was struck by a thought that completely changed my perspective.

Anyone who has had a child will agree that the beginning phase can be exhausting. But I was humbled/embarrassed by the realization that, while I was dreading the impending sleep deprivation, there are people in my own life who would give anything to “have” to wake up and care for a newborn…but they haven’t yet had the opportunity.

So instead of feeling sorry for myself and researching maximum daily caffeine limits, I instead should be grateful for the fact that I get to be a dad at 1:45am and 3:12am and 4:30am and…

As I applied the same mentality to other situations in my life, be it work, progress toward personal goals, etc., the same scenario tends to plays out: I hit a patch that scrambles my norm and I have a choice to make. I can either get down about it or look on the bright side and focus on the ways I’ll grow from the situation once I’ve made it through.

More often than not, I’m beyond blessed to live the life I do, but focusing on the negatives distracts me from that. I’ll end up being a better husband, father, employee, etc. if I can continue to look on the bright side.

What about you? Has there been an instance in your life where you’ve had a similar change in perspective?