Two boys were waiting for their birthdays to come. One was a
pessimist and the other an optimist. The first boy was a greedy boy and wanted
so many things but most especially he expected
to get a drum. When his birthday came he
walked into his room and opened present after wonderful present. But, when no
drum appeared, he sat down and wailed.
The
second boy had no expectations
of what he wanted for his birthday. He
would be happy with whatever came his way.
When the day came, he went into his room and all he found was a pile of
manure. He gleefully ran out to the
shed, got a spade and started digging into the manure. When asked what he thought he was doing, he
replied
“with
all this manure around, there must be a pony in here somewhere!”
One
boy was the eternal pessimist and the other the eternal optimist! Having a
positive attitude can stand us in good stead. None more so than when we are living with so
many restrictions in our lives.
It
can be so easy to dwell on the negative – on what is wrong with the world. But,
our faith is one of positivism.
Of
the belief that God’s kingdom is possible here and now. That good can come out
of bad. That the broken can be mended. That the lost can be found. That the
light can shine through darkness. That sunshine can follow rain.
When
we feel the pull of pessimism dragging us down may we remember the wee boy with
the spade and keep looking for the positives in our situation.
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