Life is Created in the Everyday

The other day my daughter’s vintage clothing store, My Closet Etc, was part of a vintage market in Atlanta, our city.  We were nervous, excited, and a little fearful- the normal mixture of feelings you get when you do something for the first time. The morning of the event we disassembled the clothing racks, packed them up in the car along with all the clothes and beautiful things she sells.  I put the screws and bolts of the racks in a bag and placed them by my purse since I knew I couldn’t forget them. I started getting ready but I didn’t like my outfit so I changed a couple of times, and of course had matching purses with each new option. Finally as we were driving toward the site, I realized that the one thing I wasn’t supposed to forget was buried under a pile of clothes and purses on my bed at home. I knew that without the screws and bolts we wouldn’t be able to set up, so we kept driving, unloaded the car at the site and I headed back home.  I was so mad! It was something so simple, all I had to do was take the screws, was that so hard? As I felt the stress rising, I tried to quiet my thoughts for a second.  In the middle of my frustration I hadn’t noticed how beautiful the morning was.  The sun was peeking through the tall buildings playing with the shadows and making a beautiful sight. Then I noticed there was no traffic, I rolled down the windows and the crisp morning air blew on my face soothingly.  At that moment I made the decision that nothing was going to mess up this beautiful day.  I decided to change my attitude.  

This may not seem like a big deal, but that’s what life is made of, the daily experiences, the activities, situations, and the people we see day by day. That’s when we create memories, and build relationships. That’s what the people around us will remember.  Life is created in the everyday; therefore how we live each day is how we live our life.

We choose what we focus on, and many times we tend to pay more attention to the negative because for some reason it may look more menacing than what it really is.  Maybe it’s fear that enlarges things or the way we have been raised, or the way society has taught us to look at things.  But we can train ourselves to see the positive in everything because no matter the situation there’s always something good.  These ideas may help:

-Be flexible: Go beyond the “I planned, I thought, I wanted”.  Plans often fail and that’s ok because many times that’s when the best memories or lessons in life are created.  Be open to change and go with the flow.  Willing to let go of what you are holding on so tightly will help you enjoy more the moment.

-Be on the lookout: Be determined to find something positive in every situation no matter how hard.  Make it your purpose to keep a positive attitude. With time it will become a habit and an immediate reaction to everything you face in life.

-Make it a story: Have you ever been around people who tell really cool stories? Well, most of those stories originated from moments in which plans went out the window and things took a wrong turn, but their attitude helped them see the positive.  They not only learned something new in the process, but were excited to share it with others.  Do you think if everything went as planned for those people, would they have that many stories to share?

As I arrived to the booth I saw my daughter who smiled nervously, happy I had finally arrived. While she waited, she met other vendors, and learned from their experiences.  We set up our beautiful booth, took some photos and even had time to sit down and have a coffee.  It was, after all, a very good day.

By Manuelita @manuelitaotero