On this heavy-hearted Memorial Day Weekend I'm going to give a few reasons why I'm both grateful and thankful to be alive. These reasons are going to pull me through some tough times (this weekend has just been one of the worst-of-the-worst) but despite those huuuuuuuuge bummers I'm going to give you a list of why I'm still so happy to be me and to have the honor of living in the world I live in.
1. I have a really solid support system
I can't stress enough that my loved ones have such an unshakable and reliable base of support for me and anything I try to do. I've done so much and failed at some many things but it's never held against me. One of my best friends who has known me since our early college days calls me her "free-spirit" because I'll know when something is wrong and leave all the comforts that can come with it just to try something new. Every time I move and and trip and fall they are there to pick me up. They never know that if they weren't there to do it over, and over, and over again that I would give up and give in. This unconditional encouragement makes me over-the-moon happy.
2. Things could always be so much worse
We all {myself included} have our boo-hoo moments where our lives are different than we thought, nothing's working out, someone else's life looks more phenomenal by comparison...yadayada...but have you looked at the news lately? Infact, it's Memorial Day. Have you watched any documentaries or films of the horrors that have been our world's history, including the ones happening right now all over the world?
I was invited to a BBQ the other day at 8pm and I showed up starving because, hello, at a BBQ unless you're asked to bring snacks or side dishes it's common BBQ etiquette to feed your invited guests. Anything other than that is has a specific name; it's called a Pot-Luck and you are generally made aware of this beforehand. Famished, I show up with friends who drove me, no cash or debit card, and find out--NOPE--you were supposed to bring your own food, he was just providing the very small hole in the front of his yard to stuff a few tree branches in to start a fire. We were baffled and everyone had to scrounge around and run to the store to even get a few, sad, little hotdogs. When I'm hungry my general manner is likened to the Hulk, but I sat there and remembered that I wasn't going to get very much, but I was still going to be lucky enough to eat. And that I could sit in someone's front yard and not get questioned as to my religion or threatened because of my gender or shot at because of my nationality.
That, ladies and gentlemen, makes me happy.
3. I am intelligent
Whoa. Don't get mad and think "You arrogant ass, you're supposed to be humble." No. No one should hide behind their intelligence like all those kids who are incredibly smart but want to impress the bullies at school and lose their future's for a few knuckleheads. I'm not a genius. I'm not making any kind of headway into answering questions of the galaxy, discovering new species, being the first person to do anything or set records. I'm just trying to do me, and whatever it is that is given to me I'm not always go at right off the bat. But I'll be damned if I'm not one of the best by the end of the time period that's given to me to master it. You can chalk that up to determination but you have to be intelligent enough to know that it takes determination to go after what you want and how to be resourceful enough to do it. I'm happy that I can sludge through all the shit that comes my way and know I'm smart enough to not only cope, but conquer.
4. I like to like things
Meet someone. Ask them all the things they dislike. I'm sure they could talk for about 45 minutes of all the things that are pet peeves. Turn around and ask what they like and I bet it'll be a small list of about 10 things. It will even take them a minute or two to compile a list that small before they can fully answer it. People are prepped to know what they don't like. They know they don't like it within a millisecond of noticing it. It's like kids with food. They've never seen or smelled it before but they, in their little hearts, just know that they don't like it.
I remember the first time someone pulled that trick on me, I felt dumb and sad at the same time. Kind of like how I'm upset that children learn the word "No," much sooner than they learn the word "Yes". So, I sat down and thought of all the things that made me happy. It feels so "Sound of Music" and all but how many psychologists and accredited medical journals can you find that agree that having a positive outlook and LIKING things makes all the difference in the world? I'm happy because even when I'm truly not and I felt like TOTAL SHIT, I have an easier time finding something that will make me happy because I have that internal list. "Damn, I just bombed at doing my job? Shit. Oh, wait, the sun on my face feels really good right now..."
5. I don't care about how you feel towards me
Boom. YOU can't affect me. I hope I affect you in positive ways, but if you want to be a crab apple I'm going to give you 5 minutes to work it out with me and then after that if you are unreasonable--That. Is. On. You.
Eleanor Roosevelt said "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent". Ellie had her shit straight.
Your unhappiness is a reflection of you and not of me. I'm happy to work with you, but if I'm a fish headed downstream where life is simple and great and you're determined to go upstream I'll ask you if you want turn around with me but after that I'm just going to pray that you don't get caught by a bear.
If I spent my whole life trying to please people I wouldn't have a life. I'd have an emotional imprisonment based on others and since happiness is so fleeting with some many people, it's useless to try to keep up.
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All-in-all do what's best for you. The clear, simple path can get muddied up in the confusion of life. It's always there, people just don't want to calm down enough to listen and find it. Stay positive y'all.
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