Doesn't look much like SPRING out there, March 21, 2018! Now to be fair, I live in north western PA, snow in March is a given in a "normal" year, that's the beauty of the temperate climate weather, you get weather. But I have run into an inordinately large number of people who again, want to put a hit out on Punxsatawney Phil. Let's be clear, eliminating large, native rodents doesn't do a thing to moderate the weather though it might reduce the predation of your garden later in the season.
Why? Why are we so annoyed at late season snow storms, early fall freezes, unanticipated requests for help?
Life is very unpredictable (period) This is not original with me, we all know it. Yet, we still get thrown off when the unexpected happens, why?
I think it's because we labor under a delusion of control. We allow a false sense of security to creep in and assure us that we have a plan, we know what's coming, this is how "things should go". But it's a lie. We instead are not in control of our circumstances, as we have talked about before, the only thing we control is: Ourselves. Weather, nature, people, life... is out of our hands. However, when I think I have foreknowledge and certainty, "unexpected" things can really take their toll. They lead to an anger and frustration that somehow life is "unfair" and that I am being "cheated" whether we say this out loud or not. Otherwise, why would we be annoyed at snow instead of sunshine?
But think of the incredible power we have when we release the uncontrollable to He who is in control and stop trying to anticipate the mystery. What if we welcomed change and were ready to be thankful for whatever comes our way whether it's what we hoped for or not.
A passage from L.M. Montgomery's, Anne's House of Dreams, has always stuck with me, a description of a lovely character, Captain Jim.
"Captain Jim was one of those rare and interesting people who "never speak but they say something." The milk of human kindness and the wisdom of the serpent were mingled in his composition in delightful proportions.
Nothing ever seemed to put Captain Jim out or depress him in any way.
"I've kind of contracted a habit of enj'ying things," he remarked once, when Anne had commented on his invariable cheerfulness. "It's got so chronic that I believe I even enj'y the disagreeable things. It's great fun thinking they can't last. `Old rheumatiz,' says I, when it grips me hard, `you've got to stop aching sometime. The worse you are the sooner you'll stop, mebbe. I'm bound to get the better of you in the long run, whether in the body or out of the body.'"
Getting in the habit of enjoying things, there's a challenge for us! So when the unexpected rears it's head, ask yourself, "Why am I frustrated? Did I have unrealistic expectations? What am I in control of now?"
So, what should we expect when the unexpected happens? Expect to be surprised, then choose to be thankful, gratitude has the power to put you back squarely in control of YOU.