Choices

Today I choose life. Every morning when I wake up I can choose joy, happiness, negativity, pain… To feel the freedom that comes from being able to continue to make mistakes and choices – today I choose to feel life, not to deny my humanity but embrace it. ~Kevyn Aucoin

Delayed.

The worst word a traveler can hear. Well that and maybe cancelled.

Cancelled is much worse then delayed.

But thankfully since it is summer, we don’t have to deal with cancelled to much.

Just with delayed.

Who knew delayed could sound like a swear word.

As I sit here amongst weary travelers. Groaning over the inconvenience and snoozing because they need more caffeine, which okay there can never be enough caffeine in the world, but that is beside the point.

I am struck by how stressed people are. How one such word as Delayed can ruin the day.

And I get that there are connections to make, business meetings, and important daily lives to get too.

And maybe it is because I am on vacation.

After weeks of being in a city, albeit one I love, I am relaxed and calm. I am going to the ocean, the mountains and fresh air, the peaceful sounds of the waves and nature rolled gently into one. I am excited. And I will get there when I get there. We all will.

Obstacles come up in our every day lives.

Some worse then others.

Some that are just huge pains in the derriere.

We can either grumble and bitch and complain to anyone who will listen, what an inconvenience it is and if I was in charge well I would do this, and while I am at it who is in charge?

Or we can find the bright side.

Because even in our darkest moments there is always a little bit of good.

Whether it is the rays of sunshine peeking through, help from a stranger on the subway, or looking at the time you are delayed as a chance to explore, or make a new friend, or even write.

It is, as the news stations are famous for saying, the “spin” we put on things. We can look at it as the glass half full or look at it as the glass half empty. We have choices, even when many choices are taken from us. Our attitude, our anger and frustration is a result of those decisions being taken from us. To be angry, is our way to control.

But we can just as easily choose to smile. We can just as easily find the lemonade out of that moldy lemon (no one is ever going to drink lemonade after reading that, sorry). It IS our choice to be happy and content amongst the discord.

I admit. I am guilty of getting upset just as much as the next person. Whether it is a subway delayed, or tourists who walk five abreast (note to any tourists who come to Manhattan, Do NOT walk five abreast) I have to remind myself to find the lemonade constantly.

It isn’t always the easiest thing. Especially when you WANT said lemonade.

but it is a choice.

Just like when we choose what we wear in the morning, or whether to go running, or do yoga. Take chances or not. Choices.

Circumstances don’t take those choices away as much as we think. WE take those choices away. By our attitude. By what we put out there.

We get what we give.

If we think life is always going to be easy.

Then not only are we all delusional, we aren’t really living it.

Those obstacles give us the chance to handle life, in a positive way, or many times an irrational way. But it is ours to choose.