By Don Lindsey
After writing last week’s article about spring cleaning, and then spending the week catching up on that cleaning, I realized that there was another key factor in the cleansing process whether it’s physical or emotional that I failed to mention:
Taking stock of what’s good in your life and what isn’t.
While I did mention that it was important to toss or give away what you didn’t need, I didn’t realize the value of taking inventory until I started sorting through some stuff earlier in the week. It was Monday and the family was still reeling from the loss of one of our cats, Fuzzy. If you’re a pet owner, then you know how much it hurts when you lose an animal. As I was going through some pictures of her that my wife put on Facebook, I happen to see a couple other cats that I had owned and lost. This could have made things worse for me but instead, at that moment I realized how lucky I was to have had those wonderful creatures. I still miss Fuzzy a lot, but that moment of gratitude helped snap me out of the sadness I was feeling and in turn also helped me to be there for my wife and kids who had much more time with her than I had.
A couple of days later, I was grumbling about how much I had to do. I still had a lot of cleaning up and projects around the house to accomplish but just couldn’t seem to get started on something without something else popping up. I can’t remember when it was exactly but at some point, I remember thinking about how much my wife does in a day at her job alone and I found myself starting to feel very blessed that I have the things and folks in my life to keep up with. Parents still alive, children that I love watching grow up, a wife that is loving and supportive along with a lot of friends and family made whatever grumpy attitude I had vanished rather quickly.
As the week came to an end, I found myself sitting in my bedroom last night thinking about the week and all that happened in it. I didn’t realize that I had spent the week taking inventory of my life and letting go of some of the things that were emotionally getting in the way. Early in the week, I was able to channel my grief for our cat into gratitude for having as many years with her as I did. Mid-week, I was frustrated with the list of things I needed to do but let go of that frustration long enough to appreciate what I have. Going into this coming week, I am looking to take the lessons of this past week and will continue to take inventory of my life by eliminating the negative outlook I seem to have when things get too stressful. If I can accomplish this, then I’ll be able to enjoy the week ahead with the wife off work for the week and the kids home for spring break, something I am really looking forward to.
With constantly taking stock of where I’m at in my life, I hope to stay aware of the opportunities to help others that pop up. Whether it’s my kids, wife, or parents, I want to be a positive influence on the environment around me. I can’t do that if I’m too worried about myself and my life. Looks like I just took inventory in the last sentence. I want to be a positive force in my life and need to eliminate selfishness to do that. God bless and have a wonderful week.
Don Lindsey is a follower of Christ, son, husband, father, and a survivor. Originally from Dayton Ohio, and resident of Apopka for six years, Don sees his life as a dedication to his wife, parents, children, and community.
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