According to one of my best friends, Jo, life is all about having a positive mental attitude (abbreviated to PMA, opening her to much ribbing about a certain time of the month ... and yes, she does in fact yell it down the halls of school, via text message and e-mail, and communicates it in every way).
It's funny how sometimes, no matter how "P" your "MA" is, though, life just keeps smacking you down. You know those punching bag toy things, the ones that have sand at the bottom that keep coming back up no matter how many times you knock them over? Or, in the eternal words of Chumbawamba, "I get knocked down, but I get up again"? Why is it that some people are able to get back up so easily, while others just curl up in fetal position and whine about how the world is out to get them?
I'm curious, because my resilience to the ebbs and flows of life is kind of schizophrenic. Sometimes, I am totally on Jo's PMA bandwagon, singing Chumbawamba and popping right back up no matter how awful things get. Other times, I'm crying like a baby. Sometimes I surprise myself with my own strength, and at times I am ashamed of how weak I am. There's no rhyme or reason to it.
Is this just human nature? Are there people that are always able to take adversity in stride? If so, how does one become of that ilk?
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I love Chumawamba! I agree with Jo. Studies have proven that your mental health affects your physical health. I try to stay positive by looking at what I have, not at what I don't have. But sometimes rejections get me down for a few days. I always go back to writing though!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post!
My life is relatively easy...until my disability issues raise their ugly head.
ReplyDeleteTake this last hospital stay, for instance. Normally, they encourage walking to aid in recovery. Since I can't do that, I got very weak. It's been a month and I've just recently been able to get out of bed on my own. I only just took a shower today. "Sponge" baths suck!
I'm strong in the moment (during medical tests, etc.) but after the stress is over, I tend to ball like a baby...when no one is looking.
Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. That's the rule. Leave nothing to chance, always set yourself up to be self-sufficient in money and relationships, and then if things go wrong, well, you planned for it. If they go right, hey, that's amazing. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI've found that daily practice of reminding myself of gratitude, reaching out to others, and seeking spiritual connection has given me a measure of equanimity that I wouldn't even recognize as me from years past. Even when I get looped by something, or get surlygrouchycrazy in my head (both of which happen plenty), I have an underlying sense of being connected to and provided for by something greater than myself, and that really makes the difference. For what its worth...
ReplyDelete