Happiness is an Attitude of Choice
By Mac Bledsoe
Many times in the past few years I have been asked, “If you could only
teach one idea to every kid you taught in your 29 years as a teacher, what
would that idea be?”
My answer has always been the same! If I could only teach one idea to
every kid I ever taught it would be that “Happiness is an attitude of
choice!”
If I were successful in teaching every kid that I ever taught, that
they could always choose to be happy it would matter little if my other
lessons were successful because if they learned that one idea; at least
they would always be happy! No matter where they went and no matter what
happened to them they could always choose to be happy. The concept has
been presented many times and in many ways down through time but it still
remains as one of the most empowering thoughts that a parents can bestow
on their children!
“You cannot change what happens to you but you do get to choose your
response!”
“Happiness comes from the inside out!”
“No one can make me feel inferior without my consent!”
“If I can find nothing for which to give thanks, rest assured that the
problem lies within myself!”
“In a free society, your entertainment is your responsibility! Being
bored is the ultimate insult to self!”
Say it however you wish, but this is the one simple concept will be
among the greatest of gifts you can give to your kids. Think about it for
a second. If you successfully teach your kids to choose to be happy you
will have insured that they will be happy. What more can you want for your
kids?
Remember always that your kids learn more from your backside than they
do from your frontside! They will learn more from what you do than what
you say. To teach your children that happiness is indeed a choice you must
model this for them. This does not mean that your kids should never see
you crying at the loss of a dear loved one, but in your sorrow they
definitely should see you moving forward and using your loss to find some
uplifting gift that you have received from your loss. They had better see
that as part of your grieving you focus on the happy times with that lost
loved one.
The day that my father died he was sitting on the edge of his bed where
I had just helped him in the arduous task of rising to that seated
position. He was wracked with pain from the cancer that had taken over his
body and he could barely muster the strength to speak but he turned to me
and said, “Well, kid, that is the last sunrise I will ever see! I’ve
ridden this old pony for all she is worth; this will be my last time to
look on a sunrise!”
I was so startled by this comment that I could not hold back my tears!
Then he changed my outlook on life forever with his next statement. He
looked out his window at the sunrise across the bay and in his weakened
voice he said, “But, if I have to go isn’t this a good one to go out on?”
In his dying moments my father was choosing to see the happiness! We need
to be that example for our kids. When life deals you a bad hand play it
the best you can and enjoy the game!
When a beloved family pet dies… mourn with your kids; and then get out
pictures of “Old Snuffy” and recall happy times and happy memories. Help
your kids to value the entire memory of that pet and not just the sad
memory of his passing. Help them to recall messages they had learned by
knowing that dog. The loyalty of that wagging tail, no matter what
happened. In their grief help them to recall the good times. Help them to
choose to be happy. Help them to see that being happy does not have to
mean that you like what has happened; but that it does mean you get to
choose how you will respond to the tragedy.
Happiness is truly an attitude of choice. Teach that to your kids at
every stage of their development. Teach kids to laugh by laughing with
them! Every day. In the process you get to choose to see the joy in having
kids!
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