Don't worry - Be happy!

The only disability in life is a bad attitude.

~Scott Hamilton~

Have you ever noticed how some people seem to go through life in a permanent bad mood? You hear (or maybe even make) comments like “who put a burr up his butt?” but do you ever wonder WHY they always seem so unhappy? I do. I always wonder what happened in their lives that caused them to lose the joy of life. Or maybe some people find joy in being angry.

 

I’m not talking about a chance encounter with a stranger - maybe they’re just having a bad day - but those people we see on a regular basis – a neighbor, co-worker or parent of one of our children’s friends – who are seemingly always ticked off must have a reason for their dour moods – mustn’t they? Is it possible that some people are born with a bad mood?

 

Maybe it’s their personality and not their mood. I have known a lot of negative people in my lifetime and, frankly, I don’t like being around them. Negativity is like a cancer that eats away at everything that’s good in your life. The only way to cure it is to remove it. It’s like they make a concerted effort to find all the bad in this world and then hold it up like a trophy as if to say “see? I was right!” It reminds me of the hypochondriac's tombstone that reads “I told you I was sick!” Now, I’m not saying that all people with negative personalities are always in a bad mood but it seems to me that they’re in bad moods more often than not.

 

Personally, I don’t see the attraction. I’m happy about 99% of the time. I look for the good in any situation and on those rare occasions when I can’t find it, I don’t let it get me down. I mean, really, Guys – who goes through life without some bad things happening? No one – just as no one goes through life without some good things happening.  I’ve heard that some studies have shown that happy people live longer than those who constantly dwell on the negative. Well, that’s a no-brainer – or should be.

 

Many years ago when I was still a young married with little ones underfoot and life was financially hard, my husband and I took advantage of an offer to visit a buying club. Our ticket was guaranteed to win anywhere from $5 to $500. Of course, we won the $5 – as, I’m sure, did most people. I remember my husband saying “figgers! We never win anything”. I replied that we’d just won five dollars and that even though we never won the big bucks, we always seemed to have the good fortune to get the “little” bucks when we needed a loaf of bread or carton of milk. He had to agree that I was right.

 

So, be like the music - don't worry, be happy and open up your heart and let the sunshine in.  Life is good even when it's hard.