The Power of Positivity

Over time and life experiences, I have concluded the most important values in my life besides my family and faith are health and happiness. In order for me to achieve the latter two, I believe in living a simple life with as much positive energy and humor that I can muster. You know the one: the glass half full, the sun is always shining mentality. Even when life throws me a curveball, I try to learn from life’s lessons and move on. Don’t dwell on the stress or drama or waste your time worrying about things that you cannot control.

Although my mother is no longer alive, I have her to thank for my positive attitude. When I was about 4 years old, my mother suffered a major stroke following open heart surgery. The kind of stroke that forces you to learn how to speak and walk all over again. An extended stay with my grandmother was necessary while my mother recovered from surgery & stroke at Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington, DC.

Weeks later, she finally returned home to face a multitude of daily struggles. She rapidly regained her strength and gait but her speech was never the same again. Being bilingual before her stroke, she was never able to fully develop her speech fully in either Spanish or English but spoke a broken “Spanglish” that required lots of patience and understanding for those conversing with her. But that never stopped her from trying to get her point across.

Through the years though, I never once recall my mother crying or complaining over her condition but rather she was always happy, smiling and laughing no matter what obstacles were in her way and always relying on her Catholic faith to see her through. So to this day I gather strength and faith from my mother and try to lead a happy, optimistic life. Living a positive life is a choice and I hope you choose it too!
photo credit: Vincent_AF via photopin cc