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| Photo Credit: andreeautza from morgueFile.com |
There are many people
in our world. Yes, and people can be so very different in
their views, temperaments, attitudes, and personalities. Some of us can be easy-going, flexible, and
upbeat, while others can be cantankerous, argumentative, and
uncooperative. Let me interrupt for just
a second – isn’t that a fun word?
Cantankerous. I haven’t used it
for a long, long time, but it’s a word full of letters and it basically just
means crabby and cranky. Cantankerous. CANTANKEROUS!
Anyway, as a word-lover, I thank you for allowing me to digress for a
moment.
When we can, we prefer
to hang out with people who are positive and uplifting, right? If given the opportunity, most of us would
choose to surround ourselves with people who inspire, motivate, and encourage
us. If given a choice, we’d pick a
friend who views the glass as half-full instead of half-empty, right? We wouldn’t want to purposely seek out the
irritable grumps in our world, would we?
A family had twin boys
whose only resemblance to each other was their looks. If one felt it was too hot, the other thought
it was too cold. If one said the TV was
too loud, the other claimed the volume needed to be turned up.
Opposite in every way, one was an eternal optimist, the other a doom & gloom pessimist. Just to see what would happen, on the twins' birthday, their father loaded the pessimist's room with every imaginable toy and game.
The optimist's room, he loaded with horse manure.
That night, the father passed by the pessimist's room and found him sitting amid his new gifts crying bitterly.
"Why are you crying?" the father asked.
"Because my friends will be jealous, and I'll have to read all these instructions before I can do anything with this stuff. I'll constantly need batteries, and my toys will eventually get broken," answered the pessimistic twin.
Passing the optimistic twin's room, the father found him dancing for joy in the pile of manure.
"What are you so happy about?" he asked.
To which his optimistic twin son replied, "There's got to be a pony in here somewhere! Woo-hoo!"
Opposite in every way, one was an eternal optimist, the other a doom & gloom pessimist. Just to see what would happen, on the twins' birthday, their father loaded the pessimist's room with every imaginable toy and game.
The optimist's room, he loaded with horse manure.
That night, the father passed by the pessimist's room and found him sitting amid his new gifts crying bitterly.
"Why are you crying?" the father asked.
"Because my friends will be jealous, and I'll have to read all these instructions before I can do anything with this stuff. I'll constantly need batteries, and my toys will eventually get broken," answered the pessimistic twin.
Passing the optimistic twin's room, the father found him dancing for joy in the pile of manure.
"What are you so happy about?" he asked.
To which his optimistic twin son replied, "There's got to be a pony in here somewhere! Woo-hoo!"
Oh, that story made me
smile! A perfect example of
half-full vs. half-empty!
So, I’ve seen a version
of the following question in many places over the years and I wanted to share
it with you. I was inspired by it so much so that I wrote
a poem about it today. Here’s the
question: “What if we woke up this
morning and ONLY had the things and people in our lives that we had thanked God
for yesterday?” Hmmmm…..would we only
have the traffic light that finally turned green, the winning scratch-off
ticket, or the passing grade on that final exam? Would we have anyone to share our joy with?
Here’s my poem:
FULL OR EMPTY?
How full or empty would
our world be,
If
we had only things we’d thanked God for on bended knee?
Would we have a home,
some food, or money?
How
‘bout a job, some clothes, and our Honey?
Could we see with our
eyes and speak with our lips?
Could
we walk with our legs and dance with our hips?
Would our children be
there to tuck in at night?
Would
the sun wake us up with new morning light?
How full or empty would
our world be,
If
we had only things we’d thanked God for on bended knee?
Would we have friends and
fam to call on the phone?
How
‘bout some ice cream on a cone?
Could we turn on the
A/C or heater at whim?
Could
we hit the gym or sing a hymn?
Would our parents be
there to spend some time?
Would
we find that lucky penny, dollar, or dime?
Would there be hugs,
kisses, and love?
What
about chances to thank God above?
Would there be stars in
the sky for wishes?
How
‘bout mouths to feed and all those dishes?
I ask again, to reflect
and think,
Ponder
on this the next time you blink.
How full or empty would
your world be,
If
you had only things you’d thanked God for on bended knee?
Full or empty? We choose.
Half-full or half-empty? We still choose. Let’s choose to look for the pony! I’m in!
Are you?
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