My garden reminded me of this saying today, especially in light of some very busy days:

“I can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses. It’s all how you look at it.”

I hope to keep my optimistic perspective even under the most challenging of circumstances, like the last 12 months. Even when the problem is an otherwise good one to have - such as a super-hot housing market and a jam-packed schedule - I choose not to dwell on the parts that pinch but the buds that bloom. I keep words like scarcity and shortage and crisis and wars-of-any-kind from my language. There must be another view to be seen - and shared.

And if needed, I apply an unexpected blast of cold water called “optimism”!

It’s time to wash away a worldview that only highlights our problems. It starts by changing how we answer “How’s your day?”

It’s clear we are capable of growing solutions alongside our challenges. It’s built into our natural ability to say, “On the other hand...”

It’s exciting to think that even when our garden roses start to crisp in the hot summer sun, all it takes is a shot of cold water to reveal how much beauty they still have to give.

So if you feel burned out some days,
You’ve given your all, maybe more,
Give yourself a cool blast of optimism,
Wash away the dirt and the dust,
And reveal from a new perspective,
The rose and the gardener are one!

#alwaysinspiring