Positive Entry 2010 -10 Optimism vs. Pessimism -

OPTIMISM VS PESSIMISM

This subject is constantly coming up in my mind. I'm a proponent of optimism but not so much that you become delusional. I do believe that thoughts can lead to actions - good thoughts to good actions and bad thoughts to bad actions. I wanted to learn more about what others thought and began surfing the internet and ran across some interesting articles on the subject.



One article was written by a Nick Shultz - you can read it in it's entirety at this link:
http://www.articlesbase.com/self-improvement-articles/optimism-vs-pessimism-102077.html
In his closing, Nick talks about the importance of taking productive action along with having an optimistic attitude. He mentions a women he knew that had a pessimistic approach by expecting the worst to happen so that she would be surprised when something good happened. All too true in my experience, is that in the meantime while 'waiting' for the surprise, she was miserable. I'm with Nick - be optimistic, enjoy life, take the productive action to make it so!

Thanks, Nick! Smiles to you.



What about the Operation Nice posts by Melissa? One of my favorite bloggers.

There is the post which highlights the optimism of an 11 year old, named Jessica, who raised money by founding a charity at such a young age. The Charity was called 'Richards Rwanda' and was established by her to educate Rwandan young girls and successfully raised $75,000. Here is the link: http://www.operationnice.com/2010/02/nice-news-making-difference-at-14.htmlto that site. It has a CNN video interview on the site with her at 14 years of age.

Melissa has posted many times about positive effort and the productivity of optimism especially in times when tragedy strikes. She did a series of what she called Nice Campaings. A particular post about the tragic accident of a young girl and the resulting response by a friend to send out a 'Hey You'all' was very touching . In this little gesture the vitality and personality of the young girl lives on. Here is the link to that post: http://www.operationnice.com/2010/04/nice-campaign-hey-yall-day.html it's a worthwhile read.

Thanks, Melissa! Smiles to you!



I can't write about optimism without mentioning the Positivity Blog. Henrik Edberg. On his post: Take the Positivity Challenge: http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2007/02/09/take-the-positivity-challenge/ He goes into the rationale of why people aren't more positive. Some thought provoking and common sense answers to that are posted as well as some tips on how to be more positive.

Smiles to you Henrik!



It seems to me that life is just better if we look at the bright side and keep moving forward instead of sliding back into the past, revisiting the could of's, would of's and should of's that might have been.

A quick recap:

• Be productive as well as have a positive attitude
• Look to the future good that you can do
• Don't look back, the past is past and it wasn't meant to be dwelt upon

I'll end with, Smiles to you, the readers!

Maria

My positive fixes - entry 2009 - 03

CHRISTMAS FROM THE HEART

This is such a magical time of year. I know that not everyone celebrates Christmas but I wish everyone did. The traditions and decorations, the feeling of good will, the hope in a new beginning, a clean spirit, a joyful time are all part of this time. The true spirit of Christmas is about giving and helping and enjoying each other from the heart. I've always felt that it's important to give of oneself especially at this time of year.

My memories of Christmas extend way back to when I was about 3 years old and my sister and I were all dressed up for church. We were at a friend's home that day and got our photo taken at the foot of their huge, and I mean huge, tree. Even though the photo is in black and white I still remember some of the colors of the dresses we wore and the presents under the tree. Not much more just the image of it being a special time. My mom always dressed my sister and I like twins when were were young. It was easier I guess. We are 1 and 1/2 years apart, me being the oldest...but she was pretty much the taller one the whole time we were growing up and she still is!

I remember being so grateful for whatever we got for presents. You can't imagine how that felt unless you have been in situations when you don't have a lot of money. We played with the toys all year long and when Easter or our Birthday's came we would get presents then but otherwise we got what we needed. There was not much money to spend on wants during the rest of the year especially since there eventually were seven of us siblings, with me as the oldest. Somehow I think that made Christmas all the more special. Looking forward to seeing those presents under the tree was so exciting...however, I think it was even more fun anticipating and then walking out of our rooms on Christmas Eve after the 'angel' had come to see our presents all wrapped up. Giggling with each other as we opened our own packages. These are some of my Christmas childhood memories.

Maybe that is why my family keeps up this tradition even though we have all grown up and our children are young adults for the most part. But now, we are in a better position and we are used to just buying things throughout the year when we want them. We have more than we need, luckily we all have fulltime jobs and can do this. I know that having gift exchanges are fun and all but somehow the magic is not the same. I am so blessed to have so many things, and even though I am not rich by any means I don't really need anything. What I love is to get gifts from the heart and to give gifts from the heart. I think that is what we all love. That is what is uplifting to me. It is always so wonderful to know someone thought of you from their heart. Even the gesture of a gift to a charity from their heart on your behalf is something to cherish. I love hearing the story of the charity or how the giving was done. There are so many deserving people out there that are out of work or ill. Prayers are always good to give. I try to write a few prayers this time of year to give silently to those in need. Especially those I might know about more personally. Prayers do get answered.

In any case, thinking about this and how we feel when we know we have celebrated Christmas from the heart is exciting. Ask yourself if the gift you are giving is from the heart and if not, how can it be from the heart?..or better yet make an afformation - How is it from the heart? and make it happen.

It's almost Christmas, isn't it time for making more memories we will cherish for years to come - like this little gif made by a fellow blogger awhile ago and shared with me and many others gifts like these from her heart before she became ill and had to cut back on her sharing. Her heartfelt gift remains for me and you to enjoy!

Light of the day

Decided to change my blog header photo to something more appropriate to thinking positively. Of course I love quotes that are uplifting as well. When I get up in the morning I love to see the sun rising if I can. Our bedroom has a window which faces east, making that much easier to do for the most part. However, this is Seattle and there are many gray and foggy mornings. Surprisingly, there are many sunny and bright mornings as well in the area. The one thing I do when I'm on vacation is watch the sunset. I'm usually too tired to see the sunrise and sometimes the sunsets are just easier to see since the sun sets in the west and we tend to vacation on the Pacific Coast.

Here is a great photo of a sunrise I caught on a recent vacation in the Cruise port coming into Mazatlan.

Talk about lighting the day. It was a great start to a fun day. I wish I knew the answers to lighting tomorrow with today for everyone. I know that the seeds we sow each day are what germinate and manifest themselves for the future. I'm a strong believer in the thought that letting your light shine through each day can't help but light tomorrow for you and those around you. Doing something nice today...what a great idea!