Think of it this way . . .
Ever feel like this?
“Born to lose I’ve lived my life in vain
Every dream has only brought me pain
All my life I’ve always been so blue.” (-lyrics by Ted Daffan)
It’s somewhere etched in stone…we will all have our times in the valley’s low. The question is, how do we manage to experience the mountain’s high?
Personally, after I’ve “cried in my beer” long enough (and had some pretty hard talks with my sorry self), I try to see things as not so bad. I try to “stop and smell the roses” and take time to count my many blessings (it usually helps). You notice I said, “I try.” It requires a certain strength of self-will (and a lot of leaning on you-know-who).
When you find yourself in the valley of down-n-out…stop! Wipe the blear from your eyes and look up to where the sun’s shining and climb up out of those doldrums! Do what John Muir advised, “Climb the mountains and get their good things.” When you realize what a negative thing’s happening to your body and soul when those down times hit you, that, in itself, should motivate you to try thinking of positive stuff and really work on it.
Another thing that works for a lot of folks is to “get out of yourself” and into the lives of others who suffering from this same sad syndrome. Be sincerely sympathetic, caring and encouraging. Offering others a helping hand like this will make you feel a whole lot better… (and the Lord will bless you!).
“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us;
what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.” Albert Pike
-John D.
