You have a choice. Every day you wake up given the gift to live another one, you have a choice to make: will you look for the bad, or will you look for the good?
This decision is often made unconsciously as it stems from our habits over time. If you have a habit of complaining and noticing the bad things before the good, you have a predestined choice of looking for the bad every day. If you have a habit of complimenting and focusing on the good things life has to offer, you have a predestined choice of looking for the good every day.
There's a saying I often hear from vegans, “You are what you eat”. As catchy and truthful(somewhat) as it may be, I like to believe and live by a slight variation of that, “You are what you think”.
Now before you think that I'm just a preppy, naive little white girl who has never had to deal with anything traumatic in life and therefore has no idea how difficult it is to just choose to look for the good in life. How could I possibly know how difficult it is to see a light at the bottom of a hole so deep, the Eiffel Tower could stand in it without clearing ground?
Among other battles in life, I've been perpetually sick for 7 years. I'm talking endless amounts of doctors appointments and medications before and after they finally figured out what's wrong with me. Even now, I struggle every day living with a chronic illness and facing the reality that it may just be the thing holding me back from accomplishing any dream I've ever had. Let me tell you, that's a damn deep hole.
So yes, yes I like to think that I have some idea of how difficult it is to simply look for the good instead of the bad. Nothing comes free in life does it? But the price paid in the level of difficulty is minimized to nothing once you start to see all the love and beauty this world has to offer. Once you stop looking for the bad and focus on all of the good right in front of you. Once you start appreciating it. Once you start finally being legitimately happy. That's the ultimate goal isn't it, true happiness?
The key is constantly searching for the good in every situation you encounter over and over again until it becomes a habit. Once it becomes a habit, it isn't anywhere near as difficult to accomplish and by then you've hopefully been able to dig your way up to the light.
It's become such a prominent habit in my life that I sent a text to a friend earlier this week crying about health problems I was facing. The moment I hit send, I immediately and without really thinking about it, sent a follow up text with a theory about God's plan for me and how the problem I was just complaining about could actually be a blessing, I was just looking at it wrong.
I won’t lie to you, it’s insanely difficult and it takes a lot of time and effort in order to form such habits. However, they are worth it as they open your eyes to a whole new world of possibilities and happiness. What could be better than that?
So make the right choice.
Choose the good and eventually, the good will be all you can see.