Right now my mother is reading Pollyanna to my youngest sister. They are both enjoying it immensely, just as I did when I first discovered this written story. There are many great lessons that can be gleaned from this children’s classic.
For me the most powerful of the lessons taught is how to play “The Glad Game,” and why it is so important that we do so. It is possible to see things as they are and yet at the same time focus on the good side of them. To do so takes a conscious choice on our part, which may not always be easy to do, but it is always possible.
I am reminded of a quote my father has on the wall of his office which says,
“In this life trials and tribulations are mandatory, but misery is optional.”-unknown
I know that this is true. It may not be in our power to always control what happens to us in our life, but it is always in our power to decide how we will look at, and thus react to what happens to us. President Gordon B. Hinckley, the fifteenth President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka The Mormons) has counseled,
“I am asking that we stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight. I am suggesting that as we go through life we “accentuate the positive.” I am asking that we look a little deeper for the good…What I am suggesting is that each of us turn from the negativism that so permeates our society and look for the remarkable good…” The Spirit of Optimism, New Era July 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley
I look at the lives of my many single adult friends. All of them have their own personal trials which they struggle through day to day. Some of my friends are so weighed down by these trials to the point of bordering on depression, and despondency, or anger; others seem to find an inner peace, strength, and even happiness despite everything. The difference is what they focus on. Or in other words, their attitude.
My friends, who seek to look for the good in their lives and hold that as their focus, are generally happy, where those who focus on all the trials and hardships are not. It is that simple. My Mission President would often remind me that if I looked for the good then I would always find it, but if I focused on the bad then soon that would be all I would be able to see.
In seeking to apply this principle in my life, I have found a strength I did not know that I had, to overcome hardship and find happiness and peace in the midst of the storms of my life. Whenever something bad happens in my life (like how I recently tore all the ligaments in my left ankle), I immediately try to play the “Glad Game” and seek to figure out what I can be grateful for.
In the incident of my ankle, I was grateful that I didn’t damage it enough to need surgery. I was grateful to be able to borrow crutches to help me get around. I was grateful for loving friends and family who have taken such good care of me….Really the list can go on and on.
“Count Your Blessings Hymn #
When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings; name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
[Chorus] Count your blessings; Name them one by one.
Count your blessings; See what God hath done.
Count your blessings; Name them one by one.
Count your many blessings; See what God hath done.
2. Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings; ev’ry doubt will fly,
And you will be singing as the days go by.
3. When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you his wealth untold.
Count your many blessings; money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven nor your home on high.
4. So amid the conflict, whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged; God is over all.
Count your many blessings; angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.”
Text: Johnson Oatman, Jr., 1856–1922 Music: Edwin O. Excell, 1851–1921
