I work at a children’s hospital. I don’t know if I mentioned that before. This, as you can imagine, can be difficult. A lot of time I have to go in the back to regroup and not start weeping in front of the kids and their families. Fortunately, I work in an area of the hospital that deals with broken bones and the flu… not oncology, which would result in daily tears.

Working around children who have health issues really puts your life in perspective. Sometimes I find myself complaining about things that seem really important. Like how I sometimes feel overweight. How sometimes I get sad about my ex-boyfriend. How sometimes there is a symphony following me around with a thunder head above me.

You get the idea.

I am like every other human being. Self-involved and self-pitying. Basically, I am awesome…

So here I am, feeling whiny and upset about my miniscule trials and tribulations. And here comes a family, driving seven hours from destination X. They are here for their kid who has XYZ. Sometimes it is something simple like a broken arm, other times it is something like bone cancer.

Here is the kicker… they are always positive (well, not always… but give them a break—think about what they are dealing with!?!) So, 94% of the time, they are upbeat, they are kind, they are patient and the kiddo is usually always curious and hilarious. This is why I love kids. They always have a positive outlook, regardless of the situation.

It stops me in my self involved tracks. I take a step back, realize how blessed I am in this wonderful life/body of mine. Of course I feel things and get sad like everyone else (see last three posts…) but it is such a good eye opener to realize how lucky I really am.

For example, today I spent the morning walking in the rain with my dog (I adore the rain; thank goodness I live in Seattle). I followed that up by a wonderful yoga session, channeling grace and forgiveness, and ended my morning with an hour-long sauna… What in the world could I possibly be complaining about? On top of all of that awesome, I got lucky and scored some vegan leftovers from the S-mom who is like a god in the kitchen. A chickpeas/puff pastry/dried fruit pie that had me licking the plate.

True. Not all days are as incredible as today.

However, all days I am blessed.