About 2 years ago I decided, with conscious effort, to come up with a phrase I could use. The phrase I chose at the time was “Its an outrage!” I used it in both serious and funny situations, like when something didn’t go quite the way I expected or when things went exactly as I expected. It wasn’t uncommon to see me hold my hands over my head, fists clenched, and exclaim “its and outrage!”

However, here at the beginning of 2012 I decided it was time for a new phrase. The “its an outrage” phrase carries lots of negativity, so I needed something that had a little more positive spin. There wasn’t a contest or anything, and the possibilities list was rather short, but I settled on “its a blessing.” I thought I could foresee how I could use this phrase. When one of my kids tells me a story about something happening at school, I’d say “its a blessing.” My company lands a new client, “its a blessing.” I win a valuable cash prize, “its a blessing.”

Now that we’re a month and a half into 2012, I’ve realize what I have done to myself. As you probably already know, things don’t always go your way. Bad things do happen. Can I still say “its a blessing”? That has been my challenge at the start of this year. Not only do I need to be able to use the words, but to have the “its a blessing” attitude too. Can I always say and believe that whatever happens “its a blessing”?