So here I am, learning to live in love, working at feeling joyful and manifesting only good things in my life when I get the crazy notion to turn on the news.
Well, just let me say, that can bring a girl down off her happiness high in a skinny minute.
It makes me feel like the whole world, as Ozzy Osborne would say,
“is going off the rails on a crazy train”
I don’t want to keep my head in the sand, but I swear, sometimes I just want to ignore the fact that the world is about to end due to climate change or nuclear war and focus on something really important, like those boots I saw online the other day. My belief is, if I’m going to walk the road less traveled, I will need a new pair of boots!
The World of 24/7 News
The news is now 24/7 on tv, radio, your phone. It’s often hard to get away from it. Then on top of that, there’s that whole “fake news” thing. You can pick your channel so you only hear the news the way you want to hear it. It’s enough to make my head explode.
It’s not just news either. Some of the shows on TV these days are horrific. I really don’t want to see someone getting kidnapped, murdered, beaten, stabbed…well you get the picture. It may be corny, but I wouldn’t mind if the tv only played Hallmark movies, Andy Griffith, Duke Basketball (when they win), This Is Us and Ellen’s Game of Games. I wish, just once, I could turn on one of the local news channels and see that someone has stolen a donut truck. That way I’ll get to watch the police chasing a donut truck or maybe a news cast full of dogs and cats getting rescued. I guess that’s what YouTube is for.
What does a girl do to keep her spirits up while the whole world goes to hell in a hand basket? Where is the balance of staying informed without being overwhelmed and stressed? I get angry when I hear some of these stories and then I feel sadness because I can’t do anything about most of it.
I Am In Control
The good news is that I have control of the remote and I can turn it off and there are SO many channels I can pick and choose what I watch. But as a responsible adult, I do feel like I must keep informed about the happenings of the world. After some research, I have found some things to keep me from going completely off those crazy train rails.
The first thing is to limit the amount of news I consume. I need to stay in the know, but at the same time, I want to make sure that I spend more time on things that make me happy and not stressed out.
After a bit of the news, I try to fill my time with a good book, playing with the dog, or hanging out with my friends. Good food and good wine is ALWAYS better than TV. And honestly, if the world ends, there isn’t anything I can do about it, so I might as well be doing something I like when it’s happening.
No TV in the bedroom. I used to turn on the TV first thing in the morning so I would know what the weather was going to be. I figured being bombarded with bad news wasn’t the way I wanted it to start my day, so no more news in the morning. I now just ask Alexa for the weather. Although I’ve noticed her accuracy is questionable.
If I find that there is a story on the news that bothers me, being active in the cause can help me by getting involved with a cause that inspires me. Donating money or time to a cause that I feel strongly about, doing something, even something small helps me feel better.
The Miracles Are All Around Me
Just when I believe that the world is doomed, I make myself stop to take in the miracles all around me! That flower that pops up in the cracks of the sidewalk; that I breathe in and out all day long without even trying; not to mention that we are on a ball spinning so fast we don’t even realize it’s spinning; circling another ball of fire; next to another ball that controls the oceans! Or there’s the fact that someone somewhere realized that if you squish grapes and let them sit around for awhile you get wine! I mean the list just goes on and on!
I have been reading Gabby Bernstein’s “The Universe Has Your Back” and taking a manifesting challenge with her. I have learned so much, but I think my favorite thing is that if I find myself focusing on the negative and feeling overwhelmed, I can choose again. I can choose to focus on the joy and find a million things to appreciate about my life. I can choose love.
I can choose to be the light in the room, to be happy, not let the world get me down. Now, I know what you’re thinking, that kind of happy all the time person is SO hard to be around! I get it. But I would rather someone not want to be around me because I am happy rather than because I am a downer.
It’s My Choice
The good news is I GET TO CHOOSE! It’s ME – not the person on the TV delivering the bad news; or that person that cut me off in traffic; or even the person in the grocery store that blocks the isle while painstakingly deciding which coffee they want. Even though I kind of understand that because there are so many different kinds! But do they have to block the whole isle with their cart and not pay attention to all those around them trying to get by? I mean really.
When I feel myself spiraling into the madness of the human population, I can step back, take a deep breath and choose not to spiral; choose not to get mad. Although, when I’m in the car and someone almost hits me while they are texting, giving them the thumb makes me feel better! Actually, it makes me laugh and think of my Mom and then I feel better.
The Thumb
I guess I need to explain the thumb thing. A few years ago, my Mom told us that she was trying to pull out of our church parking lot. The church sits on a fairly busy road and even though the speed limit is 35, most people don’t abide by that suggestion. 45 is probably the average speed of most of the cars whizzing by. Anyway, Mom sees her chance and pulls out into traffic. A man comes flying around her honking his horn. So, my mom said she gave him the thumb! That’s about as mean as my mom gets and she thought she was giving it to him! Needless to say, we all now give people the thumb, knowing that it is WAY worse than the finger. Because it originated from mom!
Finding My Sanity
Being a responsible adult sure does come with it’s challenges, but I am learning to navigate all the bad by finding my joy and remembering all the things I am thankful for. That’s what keeps me sane in an insane world.
Did you enjoy this article? Become a Kuel Life Member today to support our ad-free Community. Sign-up for our Sunday newsletter and get your expert content delivered straight to your inbox.
About the Author
Claudia Hufham is a blogger, mom to two grown kids and a Boxer/American Bulldog, who found herself looking for a new career at age 59. In her quest to reinvent herself and save her sanity, she started a blog. Her humor and down to earth story telling of her life lessons have led her to be featured on sites like Feedspot.com. You can read more from Claudia at Claudiareinvented. You can follow Claudia on her Instagram and FaceBook Page as well.
Claudiareinvented is featured on Feedspot as one of the Top 10 Women Over 50 Blogs
Thank you Claudia for reminding us to look for joy and to count our blessings when life gets us down. I really appreciate this philosophy and I’d much rather be around someone who is joyful than someone who is a downer. This post came at a really good time for me, since I was feeling hurt and sad over how someone treated my husband and me recently. You reminded me that I can’t control someone else’s behavior, nor should I consider it my fault. Instead I’ve decided to choose joy and to appreciate the good things in my life. I’m sharing this to FB.
So incredibly happy that Claudia’s share helped you. It is always amazing how the Universe gives us what we need, when we need it. Thank you for sharing this with your world! It’s a great message to shout from the rooftops!
Christina I am so glad that you could step back, choose again and choose JOY!! Thank YOU for reading it and even more for letting me know that got something from it!