Two days until 2011 begins and it is a time we can all be thankful that we made it through another hectic year. Some of us may be very excited for what the new year holds. Some of us may be facing some new challenges and feel stressed about the unknown. That is okay. The most wonderful (and terrible) thing about life is that it changes. If things are just awful right now, they will get better. Have faith in that. If things are amazing right now, they could not always be that way. So enjoy it to the fullest!
Know that the next year is what you put into it. So why not start off with some excellent karma?? I want you to think:
WWJD???
You may be thinking to yourself – what the hell has Lindsley been drinking?? She has never been BFFs with Jesus so WTF? Well, what I am talking about is WHAT WOULD JIMMY DO? As in Jimmy Stewart in “It’s a Wonderful Life.” This movie is so inspiring and every single time I watch it, I think “Why can’t we all be more like Jimmy Stewart?” He gave money and help to poor people. He protected his buffoon of an uncle no matter what. He always had hope no matter how bad it got. Everyone in town loved him. So I say to thee my Ladies in the Pink – with your actions and thoughts, just think WWJD and I guarantee you will be uplifted to a better way of life. Here are some ideas:
MAN UP – when Jimmy loses his sh*t at home and screams at his daughter playing the piano, and yells at his wife, we want to scream “Jimmy – noooooo!” But he quickly realizes (with the help of his most excellent wife) that he has done wrong. And he formally apologizes to everyone. He tells his daughter she doesn’t deserve to be talked to that way, and he’s right. So, the next time you are frustrated, angry, fed up, DON’T scream at your kids, spouse, boyfriend, sibling. Go to the bathroom. I’M SERIOUS. Go sit on the toilet or take a shower or bath and COOL OFF. Just 10 minutes will let you properly think about what is happening and deal with it intelligently and not emotionally. Try it and let me know if it worked for you. (Incidentally, my husband thinks I go to the bathroom way too much.) If you lost it, especially on your kids, go apologize. Man up. I can’t tell you how many adults I see screaming at their poor kids because they can’t handle their own stress. Pathetic and makes me want to call Child Services.
TAKE THEN GIVE
In the movie, Jimmy Stewart never gets to go to Europe or anywhere else for that matter because he is too busy saving everyone else. The concept that we should spend all of our time helping others is a wonderful one but unrealistic. This was a movie after all, and there are few Mother Theresa’s out there. However, the next time you do something for yourself (which I hope you do often because you need to treat yourself well), do something for someone else too. If you go shopping and buy $100 worth of clothes or goods, make a mental note to go home and donate online $10 to a charity. If you book a trip, same thing. Decide that you won’t have your $5 Starbucks one day a week and donate that $20 you just saved that month to someone. Or buy something for someone else. Charity doesn’t just mean giving to the poor. Christmas is not the only time to make someone smile with a gift. My husband brings me flowers every now and then for no reason and let me tell you, that $20 spent on me makes me feel like a Princess.
TAKE ACTION
Jimmy Stewart needed a guardian angel to change his attitude and let him see that he actually had it pretty good. I doubt an angel is visiting me anytime soon, so I’m going to have to do it for myself and you can too. Don’t like your life? Do something about it. A friend of mine is STILL complaining about her job 2 years later. Another friend stayed 5 years in a bad marriage. Another friend is unhappy not having someone special but won’t go online dating. HELLOOOOOO people!!! Wake up call – the guardian angel is NOT coming. Go change your life now.
And, if you want to feel like a better person IMMEDIATELY – how much do we LOVE instant gratification??? Do this:
- Send a thank you note to someone who just did something for you – invited you to lunch, talked you up when you were down, bought you something. And please don’t do that ridiculous online card thing. It is so impersonal and lame. The post office still works people. Wouldn’t you love to get a card amongst all those bills?
- Walk a dog – most animal shelters will let you come by and take dogs out for much-needed walks. They don’t have enough staff to walk all the dogs they have. It is free and their schedules are extremely flexible.
- Shopping spree – take $20 and go to the grocery store or .99 cents store and buy some canned food. Not that unhealthy crap but some vegetables and soup and stuff. Go drop it off at Salvation Army or any local charity. If you are like me, you may not even have to go to the store – plenty of stuff to shop right in my own cabinets.
- Commit yourself – make a resolution (I know, I know) to volunteer, or do something charitable. Just google the kind of charity you want to get involved with and voila – instant goal.
THANK YOU LADIES FOR LISTENING TO MY UP WITH THE PEOPLE SPEECH AND FOR DOING GOOD. NOW GO MAKE ME PROUD!
;)
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