Real People. Real Weight Loss.®

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Still on the Road… Staying Determined and Positive

I have enjoyed the daily messages of Ralph Marston for many years. He has such a concise, positive way of expressing how to live your best life. To me, the key elements in living the best life include enlarging your vision to see beyond yourself, developing a healthy self-image, learning from and letting go of the past, finding your strength in life’s challenges, discovering the joy of giving and choosing to be happy in your life.

A recent message he posted reminded me of the feelings I experience when stuck in a traffic jam. I am certain you have had similar experiences. Sitting in a long line of vehicles is not the way I planned my day. It is mucking up my time schedule! Life has just thrown me a bucket of what could well be frustration and disappointment. Am I determined to deal with the experience in as positive a manner as possible? I can still quietly and steadily achieve. I may not be able to make a lot of progress, but I can make a little progress. That small progress adds up!

Several years ago, while in a huge jam on the beltway around Washington, DC, I decided to put into action all I had learned and try an experiment. There was a lot of honking, revving of engines, and white-knuckled gripping of steering wheels around me that was accomplishing nothing positive for any of us. I happened to have in my purse a large, red, rubber clown nose that I had recently used in a small group meeting to help work through some conflicts.

Circus Clown

Donning the nose, I proceeded to roll down my window and begin to wave at those who came near to my car and smiled proudly! The result was tremendous! People were doing double takes, pointing, and beginning to smile. They gestured to other nearby vehicles to take a look at the unexpected. It was almost like a collective sigh, a letting-go, and a positive shift in the karmic state in which my fellow travelers and I found ourselves.

By observing those around me as we inch along, I have the great opportunity to learn from their ways of coping and decide if I want to handle such complications in the same way. Which behaviors are helping them, and maybe helping me, in the journey we are sharing in this moment? I have learned that small acts of kindness smooth the way as do a sense of humor and a large dose of patience… and that these encourage even the slow progress and strengthen determination to get to the final destination having enjoyed the journey! We continue to make progress when we fuel our actions with positive determination.

Did the traffic jam magically vanish? Nope! Did we get through the process faster? Probably not! But the way so many of us related to it absolutely changed. We allowed humor, patience, and kindness to fill our spirits and celebrated not only the slow progress but also the very journey together. The red nose now stays in my glove compartment ready when needed!

This so perfectly applies to our journey in TOPS! There are times we will meet frustrations, discouragements, setbacks, and even despair. However, we know we are intelligent people who are learning to live our healthiest lives. We look at those who have reached their goals and see them waving to us to join them. Hand in hand, we share the journey happily confident that we will succeed.

We are determined and positive!

I Care,

Barb

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