By Dianna Flett
“Sometimes I lie awake at night and I ask, “Why me?”, then a voice answers “Nothing personal, your name just happened to come up.” – Charlie Brown
We all get overwhelmed. We go to places that make us wonder what we’ve done to bring such challenges to our lives and question how in the world we’re supposed to cope when so many things are going wrong. The voice that tells you, “Nothing personal…” is only slightly satisfying. The challenge is to look at the things in our lives that are working and that are going better than we hoped and give them their moment in our thought process. When you feel worried, weighed down, or overwhelmed, take a moment to reframe your situation and ask yourself “why me” by leading with the good things happening in this challenging time of 2020.
When our friends rush to our sides with offers of assistance and support in times of trouble, ask yourself:
“why me”.
When a loved one suffers a serious accident or illness and somehow they survive with the support of skilled doctors and nurses we’ve never met, ask yourself:
“Why Me?”
When we have a child who is struggling with school, and teachers join us to move them forward to a place of understanding and growth, ask yourself:
“Why Me?”
If we focus solely on our challenges, we miss the success and gifts that each day brings. When our head is down and shaking in dismay we might not see opportunities and moments that are gifts we can see when we lift our heads with purpose. I am not a Pollyanna. I have suffered many hardships in my life. As I’ve grown through them, I’ve come to realize those hardships were a gift that brought focus and attention to the important things I might have missed like good friends, good health, caring professionals, and teachers. Those moments of challenge provided clarity to my thoughts about the gift of “the routine” and put sharp edges to what is really important and what is just nonsense in terms of impact on my life. For every moment I think “why me” when things are hard, I can now consciously balance that thought with what I should recognize and be thankful for.
It is easy to forget the many things we share in our lives that can go unrecognized and underappreciated. If a gathering of 20 is not right this year, a gathering of 10 can be filled with bounty. If traveling to see loved ones isn’t in our best interests, taking time for a video connection with a laugh and holiday toast will ease our sense of loss.
Our children are watching us navigate this new landscape.
When they look to you and ask,
“Momma, why me, why us, why now?”
Look back with a twinkle in your eye and say:
“I don’t know honey, but we sure are lucky, aren’t we?”
