My great desire is to be a woman with a quiet and gentle spirit. I long to meet adversity face to face, smile gracefully, and do the next thing. The reality of me is something different. I get frustrated and irritated and start murmuring. I think "no one else has to mess with their stupid generator" or "if only we would have taken care of this when we should have, this wouldn't have happened". I become discontent and my focus becomes "poor me", making me ineffective in taking care of the business at hand.
As I sat stewing about my current problem, I started thinking about the life that we have been preparing for. We have been stocking up on food, communications equipment, weapons and ammunition. We have been cultivating skills to serve us in a grid down situation. We have been canning, shooting and deepening our faith. But, have we been molding our attitudes to deal with adversity? Do we meet adversity with quiet faith and a can-do attitude, or do we moan and complain and say "it's not fair"! Do we stomp our feet and throw a fit or do we stare adversity down and come out victorious?
Today, I decided to quit stomping my feet like a spoiled child. A broken generator and living 10 years off the grid have taught me that adversity is a way of life. Much more important than the adversity that comes my way is how I handle that adversity - that is the real test.
It occurred to me that one of our greatest assets for a preparedness lifestyle is our attitude. We can all have a great attitude when everything is going well and life runs smoothly - but the rubber meets the road when the difficult things happen. We can choose to make our life easier or more difficult when adversity comes our way. We can choose to throw a temper tantrum or we can choose to make the best out of whatever life throws at us.
Later this morning, after I had talked to God about my attitude, I tackled the generator again. I filled it with fuel, leveled it out and pushed the power button. You know what? It purred like a kitten!
Your attitude is very much like mine. I have to stop - take a deep breath - stop feeling sorry for myself...and then let go, let God. When I do that, I am always surprised at how easily adversity turns into advantage.
ReplyDeleteEnola, the way you openly show your feelings to strangers is a rare gift. Thanks for sharing your experiences in the honest way that you do.
NoCal Gal
Thanks for giving me a different way to behave when I'm frustrated. It sounds like I'm similar to you, but x10, so thinking of a better way to react doesn't hit me until I realized how my actions have changed the environment of my household (kids get mad, husband gets mad, etc.) However, if I approach a difficult situation with calm that is the attitude of everyone else in the house. Why am I so hard-headed??? Ugh!
ReplyDeleteMargaret
CA
I gotta say that this is the reason' men" talk to mechanical things like its a woman. If your gonna have to make a machine work right and not fail' saying sweat things to it and doing maintence is like maintaining a realasonship with a wife or girlfriend. I recently drove through a dry gravel riverbed (without four wheel drive) and had to gun my trucks engine to get through without getting stuck. After the ordeal I put my truck through, I patted the dashboard, said "thank you baby" (I also said a silent prayer afterwards)
ReplyDeleteThank you for this post. We are in the middle of a difficult situation...facing selling our house and moving in a far from ideal setting. We don't know what the future holds for us and although I agree that the move is necessary and needed for our family, I have been occassionally fighting the poor-me's. LOL I need to remember that these things happen and how we respond make or breaks the situation.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the encouragement. Jennifer
ReplyDeleteSometimes you blogs just appear at the right time. It's uncanny. I was having one of those rough patches were one just gets tired and fed up with all the goings on. I've caught myself a few times lately feeling like I didn't come across to others like the woman of grace I want to be. I am so glad to read this today, it's what I needed to hear.
ReplyDeleteGodBless
~Clare
P.S- I've said it before, but often stopping by your blog is as refreshing as coffee/talk with a friend
i like to think that during those "times when anything and everything goes wrong" that it is just God or one of his angels tapping me on the shoulder and sending the message to persevere, and don't give up. a week ago i was shopping for a treadle sewing machine-with the same luck i have had in this pursuit for a good long while. anyway, thirty min. from home and a hot supper when i just had this feeling to take a right and try one last spot. not 20 feet from the door of the antique/junk shop was a treadle sewing machine that worked, had all its parts and was in fantastic condition..and with a $65. price tag. i just know that God had a hand in that deal. now when the power goes out in the middle of a sewing project, a quilt or simple mending i can keep on sewing..it is good to be prepared.
ReplyDeleteEnola, I love the classic art that you have been featuring with your posts lately... I enjoy checking in to see those as much as I do to see what you have to say. Thank you for the added visual beauty as well. It's uplifting to visit here.
ReplyDeleteTrish