How was your week?

How was your week?

Yep. Same.

You may have anxiety, anger, disappointment, or any other variety of feels.

I want to share something with you that has helped me a ton, especially when things don't go how I want.

When I was in 6th grade, we had a lady principal who ran a very tight ship at our middle school - her name was Melinda Hawkins. We didn't even refer to her as Mrs. Hawkins, she was such a baddie that she could only be referred to by her first AND last name. She was terrifying with her long skirts, vests, and short haircut with a permed top. I don't have a photo of Melinda Hawkins circa 1992 but here's my perm, skirt, and vest instead from that same time period.

Anyway, from time to time when our collective 6th grade would be 6th-grader-ing, Melinda Hawkins would come on for her daily announcements and then at the end, read us this poem about ATTITUDE.  Her Texas-twang mixed with her boss-lady confidence made this a core memory and message for me, and - in light of this week, I want to share it with you. 

“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. Melinda Hawkins would always add "a school" here.
The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day
regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.

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.”

by Charles Swindoll

You can refer back to my 6th grade photo and story about Melinda Hawkins anytime you need it. Hang in there.