Article #245 Surprises
How
you view life is influenced by
your attitude. It’s easy to look at others and make snap assessments about
their life which may or may not be true. Do you do the same thing with yourself
by judging your challenging situations too quickly, not seeing the hidden gifts that can come from difficult surpriseS? Failure may seem only a step
away as you fall over stumbling blocks
unless you see that with some creativity, unwanted surprises can be turned into stepping stones.
For
most people who marry, divorce
can be seen as a failure of the
highest magnitude. Whatever the cause of this surprise separation, two formerly
in love partners did commit once to live together. I would rate my divorce as
my biggest challenge in life. As I’ve gained the perspective of years, I can
see how it’s actually benefited me in many ways. Being a single parent demanded
that I build on my strengths and overcome my weaknesses. Raising four
sons alone required ingenuity and lots of patience that I reluctantly
developed. There was the choice of lamenting the unfairness of it all, the why me or pity parties that
could’ve dominated my thinking if allowed or I could choose to move on with the
daily demands of supporting and nurturing my growing family of four active
boys.
Raised
as an only child, the biggest surprise
for me after becoming a mother was that siblings sometimes disagree with each
other. As a single parent, I became a REFEREE, BREAD EARNER, COACH, and
CHEERLEADER all wrapped up in one package called Mom. Was I successful every day? No, there were times when I
was ready to dump my responsibilities and run away, but to where? The love and
commitment for my children became stronger after my divorce and steadied my
course through their teen years that were full of surprises.
Fast
forward, now as a grand parent I find I have less patience with grand
children’s misbehavior than I remember having as a parent. Maybe because…I’ve
been there, done that before. Not that
my love is any less for these children of my children, but I don’t have the
same responsibility towards them as their parents do. SURPRISE! I’m in a new
role where I can give advice (when asked) and be a resource of love and encouragement to all generations of my
family. NEXT TIME: Changing Roles
How
you view life is influenced by
your attitude. It’s easy to look at others and make snap assessments about
their life which may or may not be true. Do you do the same thing with yourself
by judging your challenging situations too quickly, not seeing the hidden gifts that can come from difficult surpriseS? Failure may seem only a step
away as you fall over stumbling blocks
unless you see that with some creativity, unwanted surprises can be turned into stepping stones.
For
most people who marry, divorce
can be seen as a failure of the
highest magnitude. Whatever the cause of this surprise separation, two formerly
in love partners did commit once to live together. I would rate my divorce as
my biggest challenge in life. As I’ve gained the perspective of years, I can
see how it’s actually benefited me in many ways. Being a single parent demanded
that I build on my strengths and overcome my weaknesses. Raising four
sons alone required ingenuity and lots of patience that I reluctantly
developed. There was the choice of lamenting the unfairness of it all, the why me or pity parties that
could’ve dominated my thinking if allowed or I could choose to move on with the
daily demands of supporting and nurturing my growing family of four active
boys. 
Raised
as an only child, the biggest surprise
for me after becoming a mother was that siblings sometimes disagree with each
other. As a single parent, I became a REFEREE, BREAD EARNER, COACH, and
CHEERLEADER all wrapped up in one package called Mom. Was I successful every day? No, there were times when I
was ready to dump my responsibilities and run away, but to where? The love and
commitment for my children became stronger after my divorce and steadied my
course through their teen years that were full of surprises.
Fast
forward, now as a grand parent I find I have less patience with grand
children’s misbehavior than I remember having as a parent. Maybe because…I’ve
been there, done that before. Not that
my love is any less for these children of my children, but I don’t have the
same responsibility towards them as their parents do. SURPRISE! I’m in a new
role where I can give advice (when asked) and be a resource of love and encouragement to all generations of my
family. NEXT TIME: Changing Roles
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