Attitude

This blossom was just bursting from its bud a few days ago and now is in full, glorious bloom. How fun to watch the colors unfold! I like the tiny rain drops on the delicate petals; a reminder that without the rain, we would not have the splendor.

It had me reflecting again on one of my favorite quotes. I've kept these words from Charles Swindoll posted in my office for as long as I can remember, and have shared his wisdom with hundreds of international exchange students in the cultural training programs I lead. My children recognize this as something of a mantra from me: Almost any situation can be improved by first adjusting your attitude.

And as often as I've read this (thousands of times!) I still need to remind myself on occasion :)

ATTITUDE

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.

And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes.

~Charles Swindoll