Thursday, May 7, 2009

Roses

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses.
Alphonse Karr

Do you grumble because roses have thorns? Do you grumble because you have to take your child to the doctor, or your dog to the vet? Do you grumble because traffic is slow? Do you grumble because you can't find a parking spot right where you want to be? Do you grumble because you don't like some aspect of your job? Do you grumble because your spouse hasn't picked up after himself? So many of us go around grumbling all day long.

We have some idea that our life should work perfectly, that roses should be without thorns, nobody should have to go to the doctor, traffic should be quick and there should be a parking spot right where we want it, our spouse should do what we want them to, and our work should be perfectly enjoyable. We resent the fact that this isn't true in our lives.

But we are looking at the wrong things. We are focusing on what we don't want, and that's why we get more of it. Complaining about everything that's going wrong prevents us from seeing all the things that are going right. We are not grateful for the blessings we have received in our life. We aren't grateful that thorns have roses. We aren't grateful that there is a doctor who can heal our child when they do get sick. We aren't grateful that we have a car that we can drive wherever we want when other people have to take the bus. We aren't grateful that there are places to park near wherever we're going. We're not grateful that we have a job, and a spouse, when other people have neither. And when we aren't grateful for the good things we already have in our life, we aren't likely to get much more of them.

Focus on the roses in your life, instead of on the thorns. Be grateful for the good things, so that you'll keep getting more of them, and stop grumbling because everything isn't perfect. The more you grumble and complain, the worse it will get. The more you are thankful, the better things will get.

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