In the last few days, things have been less than ideal.
I was upset. I didn’t understand things, and really I had a
right to not be okay or happy or peppy or cheerful or embracing each new day
with every precious moment <3. That was sarcastic.
However, I was most upset because I was allowing myself to
react so negatively toward my circumstances.
I thought I was being strong by just toughening it out, just
waking up each day and completing the necessary tasks for that day. I thought
that was what strength was.
It wasn’t until I observed another person going through a
trying time whose attitude was drastically different from my own, that I realized I wasn’t being strong, or saintly, or great. I was being just “okay”.
Strength is finding and embracing your circumstances and not
being just “okay” with them, but rather finding joy in a place where joy is not
easily found, where joy is not suppose to be found, by the world’s standards.
Strength isn’t just toughening it out, and putting on a brave face. Strength is
pushing yourself and striving for better than fine, because things are often
better than you perceive. You determine whether you are fine, or whether you are
great. Be strong.
I am a firm believer in laughter. I believe it is the one
rope tying you back to sanity. When all else rips away happiness from your
life, and you yet find something to take joy in, that is a strength, that is a
gift, that is a saving moment.
Because, honestly, that is what is going to make people
look, wonder, question. Don’t settle for the expected. Strive to exceed the
unexpected. That is what is going to not only reach your own heart, but much
more importantly, others’.
“Be joyful always.”1 Thessalonians 5:16
