The definition of a "silver lining" is as follows...A hopeful or comforting prospect in the midst of difficulty. I think I'm blessed to have an optimistic outlook on life. It has been a huge week to search for the little silver linings or blessings around here.
This past week, our family came in contact with Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. Not sure where, not sure how, but neverless, it jumped up into the air and landed square on the Brown household. Without going into the specific gross and unappealing details, we suffered from mouth ulcers and painful sores on our hands and feet. Fevers, irritations, lack of sleep or the inability to sleep, created some pretty touchy moments. Myself and Big Brownie were the only two affected.
The blessing in a couple of ways. Even though I really wish I had not contracted the illness, I was actually happy to suffer with my Big Brownie. By being sick with the exact illness at the exact same time, I was able to know what he was going through and have the right amount of compassion and sympathy for his pains. So infrequently as parents, we have knowledge of exactly what our children are going through. When they are teething, we have a sense of the pain...but not really to what extent. We just know our children are suffering. Depending on our mood or our own amount of patience, we may react to certain symptoms and not so much to others that don't seem to be that big of a deal.
Since the Big Brownie's mouth was so tender from the mouth ulcers, he couldn't use his comforting "binky" the entire weekend. So, now that he is better, he doesn't need it at all!!! YAY!!! Little Brownie and Daddy Brown didn't get sick. This actually gave them time to be just with each other and bond. Little Brownie has been a BIG mama's boy, but now, he is also a BIG daddy's boy too.
Today, my sister (Aunt Apple), ended up in the ER. Myself, the Brownies, my other sister (Aunt Berry), my mom (Tutu Nani) and my father (Papa), all surrounded Aunt Apple with uncertainty of what was happening. Faulty equipment and an inexperienced technician at a physician's office, didn't make for a great medical experience. Once at the ER, she was given the proper tests by trained personnel and she is ok. The blessing? The obvious...she is ok. The hidden blessing...even though she had a poor reading at the physician's office by a technician and faulty equipment, she at least had a physician that followed through and contacted the hospital to find out what was the best course of action for Aunt Apple. So glad that the end result was good news, but what if the equipment wasn't faulty and the test they ran was accurate. The physician followed through with proper protocol based on what information was presented to her.
Life throws us all curve balls and sometimes...hard balls. How do you handle the difficulties in life? Do you complain? Do you have a bad attitude? Do you turn to the bottle or other things? OR...do you look for the positives? Look for the silver linings in life, it is what keeps me going. I admit, there are times that I turn to the dark side and complain about a situation that didn't go my way. Then I'm reminded that others may have a more difficult situation or life than me. I remember how blessed I am and what a hopeful life we lead. Silver linings are the little blessings from God that tells you he does have compassion, he does believe in you and he is ultimately in control of it all. Every cloud has a silver lining...have you found yours today? It's there...just look for it.
This past week, our family came in contact with Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. Not sure where, not sure how, but neverless, it jumped up into the air and landed square on the Brown household. Without going into the specific gross and unappealing details, we suffered from mouth ulcers and painful sores on our hands and feet. Fevers, irritations, lack of sleep or the inability to sleep, created some pretty touchy moments. Myself and Big Brownie were the only two affected.
The blessing in a couple of ways. Even though I really wish I had not contracted the illness, I was actually happy to suffer with my Big Brownie. By being sick with the exact illness at the exact same time, I was able to know what he was going through and have the right amount of compassion and sympathy for his pains. So infrequently as parents, we have knowledge of exactly what our children are going through. When they are teething, we have a sense of the pain...but not really to what extent. We just know our children are suffering. Depending on our mood or our own amount of patience, we may react to certain symptoms and not so much to others that don't seem to be that big of a deal.
Since the Big Brownie's mouth was so tender from the mouth ulcers, he couldn't use his comforting "binky" the entire weekend. So, now that he is better, he doesn't need it at all!!! YAY!!! Little Brownie and Daddy Brown didn't get sick. This actually gave them time to be just with each other and bond. Little Brownie has been a BIG mama's boy, but now, he is also a BIG daddy's boy too.
Today, my sister (Aunt Apple), ended up in the ER. Myself, the Brownies, my other sister (Aunt Berry), my mom (Tutu Nani) and my father (Papa), all surrounded Aunt Apple with uncertainty of what was happening. Faulty equipment and an inexperienced technician at a physician's office, didn't make for a great medical experience. Once at the ER, she was given the proper tests by trained personnel and she is ok. The blessing? The obvious...she is ok. The hidden blessing...even though she had a poor reading at the physician's office by a technician and faulty equipment, she at least had a physician that followed through and contacted the hospital to find out what was the best course of action for Aunt Apple. So glad that the end result was good news, but what if the equipment wasn't faulty and the test they ran was accurate. The physician followed through with proper protocol based on what information was presented to her.
Life throws us all curve balls and sometimes...hard balls. How do you handle the difficulties in life? Do you complain? Do you have a bad attitude? Do you turn to the bottle or other things? OR...do you look for the positives? Look for the silver linings in life, it is what keeps me going. I admit, there are times that I turn to the dark side and complain about a situation that didn't go my way. Then I'm reminded that others may have a more difficult situation or life than me. I remember how blessed I am and what a hopeful life we lead. Silver linings are the little blessings from God that tells you he does have compassion, he does believe in you and he is ultimately in control of it all. Every cloud has a silver lining...have you found yours today? It's there...just look for it.
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1 comment:
Thanks Mama Brown for the reminder that there are always silver linings if we just have the eyes to see them! You bless me with your wisdom.
GG
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