Daily Rambling of an Eternal Optimist

Lately, I have been posed one specific question quite frequently. Are you nervous? (Of course referring to my upcoming trip) I have decided upon a good ole optimistic response. The only reason to be really nervous would be if I were dreading something. I prefer to use the word excited. There are positive and negative aspects to everything and no decisions are without both negative and positive consequences. It is unavoidable. Therefore, it is more appropriate to try to limit the amount of negative consequences when making decisions. But when that is not even possible, it can be useful to resist dwelling on the negative by focusing on the positive. This is my chosen method when approaching my trip to Munich. The negative aspects of this decision are obvious - missing my family, my friends, my school. Let me try with the postitive ones now: personal growth, new perspective on life, new sense of independence and self-confidence, new friends, develop fluency in German, gain international experience for my resume, become more culturally aware... Choices in life will never be cut and dry - they will always be blurry. The blur is not a hindrance. The blur gives me the opportunity to use my God-given intelligence to weigh the consequences. This is the greatest opportunity for personal growth.

(I fear that I might have been oversimplifying the 'positive v. negative aspects of all decisions' argument. The reality of it is that all of these aspects are further divisible into more positive and negative parts. So a decision can be overtly positive, while it's consequences are divided among both positive and negative aspects. These aspects can then be further divided into both positive and negative elements. I may have made that sound like chemistry...I guess that's my attempt at a metaphor. I'm horrible with metaphors! I think the Dalai Lama could better explain it, but he's not here right now.)

Traffic is a blessing. I know that statement is contrary to many beliefs that I have previously expressed, but that's because this is a new revelation. When it comes to traffic, I have always dwelled on the negative aspects for lack of positive ones to focus on. Now I have found it. Traffic slows me down. This is very important due to my recent realization that I drive too fast. The traffic that slows me down, could end up saving my life - allowing me more time with my loved ones. That's about as positive as it gets. I wonder why I was so oblivious of this until now...

Thank you Jackie. Our conversation yesterday reminded me of a fundamental truth about life. She passed down her wisdom - it was powerful. The truth that I speak of and that Jackie taught me about - People can change. It seems so obvious when it is written out like that, but I sometimes find myself becoming disillusioned with humanity. This disillusionment threatens to spoil my optimistic outlook on life. Humanity, being a creation of God, cannot be the source of all evil. Evil does often emerge from people, but people can change. As long as people can change, the world can change. Again, I need to thank Jackie for restoring my hope. Hope that the world can change to become the place that I imagine it to be. My hope was not gone, it was just temporarily forgotten. Because through God, my hope is irrepresible. Irrepresible hope.

Wow, I sure did get deep today. I have a tendency to do that...so let me lighten it up for a sec:

German phrase of the day:

Mach dir sich keine Sorgen.
Don't worry about it.