Putting it all into perspective...

How many times in the past week have I b!tched and moaned about having poor weather on my vacation and hot sunny weather when I'm stuck inside at work? I didn't get enough sleep last night so I complain about that. Perhaps that makes me crankier than what my surrounding people deserve.

...

The cat jumped up on the counter again - for the 58th time - how dare he? Oh...she's whining again...Calgon take me away!... That bejeezer just cut me off in traffic! Who does he think he is!?... Gas increased by another penny. When is it going to end??...my shoes are uncomfortable....oh this bra is digging into me...is it going to rain, my knee is throbbing...

You get the idea.

(No I don't have this litany of complaints all at once today...it's for effect)

Some days - and we're all guilty of it - we feel like the world is down on us. Our situation/circumstances feel like they could never get any worse. We're at our lowest low of all time and we don't know how we'll wake up to face a new day tomorrow.

I urge you to take a moment and think about what you do have... Do you have a job during this tough economic time? Do you have a roof over your head? Can you manage to get 3 square meals in the run of a day, and clean tap water to wash them down with? Do you have a bar of soap to clean yourself up with? Do you have clothes on your back free of holes and signs of wear? Do you still have family members to love you and wrap you in their embrace when times are tough? Do you have two feet? Do you have two hands?

http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=261948&sc=98

The horror and terror Mohamed Mara lived through is inconceivable. During the civil war, rebel soldiers burned his home to the ground, and murdered his family. They severed both of his hands...he was lucky to have escaped his own death, and later fled to Canada as a refugee. In my opinion, perhaps death for himself would have been an easier route to take than to live with the memories of what happened. I encourage everyone to click on the link and read Mohamed's story. Despite the challenges life has dealt him, he faces each new day with a smile on his face, and a big heart. When you think life is giving you the shorter stick, be thankful for what you do have. Perhaps Mohamed's story will help you, too, to put everything into perspective.