Pondering pondering

Yes, I'm still pondering away here, it's just that most of my thoughts focus toward Weight Watchers, so I ponder over at puffy pixie! Today, my mind is off on another path, so here I am. These are my thoughts, and my beliefs. I know many don't follow my religious beliefs and that's fine. If my post offends you, quit reading. I'm not out to start a religious battle. This is what I believe, not what I think you have to believe. I'm not telling anyone how they should be, this is how I want to be. There, got that covered...let's begin!

It's a forked path. Left fork is Karma. Yep, I believe. If you're an A-hole to someone, something, it's going to come back and bite you in the ass. If you're a poop to one of God's special creatures (Joshua calls them window lickers which gains him no favor in some peoples eyes!), Karma is going to bite you on both cheeks. Wouldn't it just be easier to treat everyone with respect, kindness, love, and patience? Treat everyone the way we'd want to be treated our self? Wow, that is such a profound thought, someone ought to make it a rule. Golden. Avoid the teeth of Karma all the way around!

The place I work employs a few of those 'special creatures'. No, I'm not one of them, so shut it! I messed with the mind of one of them a few years ago. I know, bad Debby. I just couldn't help myself. She tends the salad bar. She's never lonely as she's got lots of people in her mind to talk to...and she does. She's always babbling away at the lettuce etc. She's more than a bit OCD also. She has to make sure all the spoons on the salad bar point the same direction. When someone fixes a salad, as soon as they've passed, she moves the spoon back to it's correct position. A few years ago, after watching her do this over and over, she went into the kitchen. I ran up to the salad bar and moved all the spoons. She came back out and was a bit agitated. She fixed all the spoons and went back into the kitchen. Ya, I did it again. She came out again, more agitated this time, fixed them again and went back in. Now for the coup de gras, I did it again. She came out, took one look at the salad bar, threw her arms in the air and let out a screech! I knew Karma was after me but good then! It got me on Sunday. I had to work all day with her. It was the day from hell.

I may be old, but I'm not stupid. From now on, I'll do my best to be nice to everyone! Especially the less fortunate and the ass holes. Keep my soul happy, and project that happiness to others around me. Yes, even the people I don't like. I've started saying a little prayer before I open the door to work now. Taking a deep breath, letting calm enter my body, mind, and soul. Some days it's 'God please give me the strength to be the person you want me to be today. Let kindness, love, and happiness flow from me to those around me." Some days it's "God, please don't let me stab anyone with my big, sharp knife today." Hey, baby steps right??

The right fork is a bit foggy. I can't come up with a name for it, but it's what I believe with my whole heart. See, I take time to thank God for the little things that mean so much to me every day. I love sun, warm, blue skies, lovely water, pretty flowers, etc. I try to always take a minute when I see these things to thank God for sending them for my enjoyment. I thank God for the 'bad' things that happen to me too. Why on earth would I do that, you might wonder? Well, here's my opinion. No matter what happens, it could always be worse. I believe that just because something bad happens to me, doesn't mean I'm cursed. It means that God kept something worse from happening. This was the trade off. I believe there's a reason for everything that happens. We don't always know it, it's not for us to know or question. It's enough for me to know that there is a reason. A few examples.

I'm sure you've heard of tinnitus, ringing in the ear? I always thought that would be the worst thing that could happen. It would drive you berserk having a constant, high pitch screeching in your ear all the time. So, of course, I got tinnitus. It was awful, just as I thought. I couldn't sleep at night as the noise was so loud. Every quiet moment was a living hell. I let it control me. Then I thought how stupid that was. If I have it, I have to learn to live with it. I don't want to do a Van Gogh! So, I learned to mask the noise at night with a noise machine or a fan next to my bed. I learned during the quiet times of the day to take my mind off it, to just not let it bother me. I believe that tinnitus is the lesser of health evils. I believe I was 'given' this as it was something I could handle, instead of being 'given' something I couldn't. My friend said to me 'You can't just learn to live with that, you must not have it.' I did, and I do.

I was working in the kitchen a week or so ago. I was chopping away using the largest chef knife in the kitchen, which is very large indeed. I reached over to move a pot on the stove just as my knife fell to the floor. I didn't notice the knife falling as I'd burned my hand on the stove. Of course, when you burn your hand, your whole body moves. I whipped my hand off the stove, moving my body just enough to avoid the 10 inch chef knife that had just impaled itself into the floor. In the exact spot where my foot had been. A tiny burn on the hand or an impaled foot? Hmmmmm I'll take the burn thank you!

Things like this happen all the time. I could bring myself into a level of depression wondering why bad things happen all the time. I choose to think the bad things are really good things. Ya, I'm definitely a glass half full kind of girl!

My son lost his job this winter. One baby at home age 13 months. Wife a few months into a very high risk pregnancy. A house they bought a few years ago that is now worth about 50K less than when they bought it. Grim scenario.

Bad-lost his job. Good-was given a 3 month severance pay package that let him keep his insurance. So much better to thank God for giving him the severance package, than to curse Him for having lost his job.

Bad-Jobless in an over saturated market. He's a mechanical engineer. Auto industry in the toilet. Good-found a new job in the medical field. Praise God.

Bad-three month training period where he had to be away from home M-F leaving his wife, baby boy, and now baby girl home alone. Good-healthy baby girl was born!

Bad-home on the market for 50K less than they paid for it. Even if it sells, they'll still owe money on it. Good-house has been sold. Today, in MI, the way the market is, that's amazing! So, yes, they're out money, but it sure could have been a lot worse. The list goes on.

In summary, I believe everything happens for a reason. I can either be happy and thank God, or I can be miserable.

I choose to be happy and thankful.

:-)