At the end of day what really matters?

Sometimes our minds get stuck, like a record (omg! did I just say record) that's scratched. It skips and keeps repeating the same thing. When this happens our minds seem to skip over the good stuff and get stuck on the not so good stuff.  Over and over our minds repeat all the same old dramas just like a broken record.

I find myself lately getting stuck. For days or weeks I get stuck and my focus repeatedly goes back to all the things in my life that are not working.  After a particularly challenging day yesterday I was feeling exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally.  Looking to take a break from life I decided to check my emails before dinner. When the AOL page opened up I see a photo of a sweet little boy and his mom that made me smile until I see the caption on the bottom. The sweet little boy is three year old Ty Campbell and he has terminal cancer.

I know reading the story will be sad but I can't get the boy's face out of my mind so today I read his story. The story is heart-breaking, as you can imagine, but it's incredibly inspiring at the same time. Here is this family facing the most horrible situation imaginable and yet they smile and each day they feel grateful. Grateful for the little things like a trip for pizza or seeing their little boy playing with his brother.  This family is living yoga. They are present - in the moment - each moment. 

The saying goes "Live each day as if it's your last because you never know when the end will be"  We know this to be true but we don't remember that in our day to day lives.  Instead we let the broken record keep repeating the dramas of the day.  We keep thinking about all the things in our lives that aren't working.  We replay the perceived injustices, the fights with our spouse, our boss yelling at us, the kids not doing their chores, the shortage in our bank account.  At the end of the day, none of it really matters does it?  Thank you for the reminder Campbell family! 

What I found even more inspiring about Ty Campbell's story is the power of prayer.  You can read the remarkable story of this little boy who is baffling his doctors and beating the odds through the power of prayer on his mother's blog:   http://tylouis.blogspot.com/  

So what are you going to do about the broken record of negative thoughts?   Will you continue to let it skip and repeat the same patterns over and over or will you change the record? Changing the pattern of our thinking is a choice.  Do you choose to see the blessings in your life or are you choosing to see just the things that aren't working?

I'm joining the countless others who are praying for Ty and his family.  I humbly request that you join in the prayers.  I am also praying to God that we may all remember to see the blessings in our lives and that we remember to be grateful for the little things.