Belief

As a child growing up, I was raised in the southern baptist religion. It was a lot of fire and brimstone with strict rules. When I was small, I was taught to believe in God and Jesus and the bible. But as I aged, I started asking some questions that you're just not supposed to in that faith. I can still remember my mom cringing when I said it just wasn't possible that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego didn't burn when they were thrown in the fiery pit.

I've always been pretty logically minded and see most things in black and white hues. If 1 + 1 doesn't equal 2 every time, I have to know why. Why is one of my favorite words. Gosh knows I drove my mom crazy asking it over and over about EVERYTHING!

The older I get the more I realize that most things are gray in the world and for various reasons. God has continued to test me over time to "let go and let God". I like to be in control, to dictate the pace, to set the standard. I make plans and He laughs, as the saying goes. I'm slowly catching on, even as hard headed as I am.

In raising my girls, I've tried to teach them this fine art. But for the most part, the best educator is the school of hard knocks. A lesson is best learned by making mistakes. That way you work pretty dang hard to not suffer the consequences more than once.

One of the hardest lessons to teach is to have self belief. To have that means you have to have confidence. Most young girls don't have much of that unfortunately. I know I was about 30ish before I really solidified mine. You live and you learn. But once that switch flips, it's like a light bulb turning on. And it is definitely a switch, because it can turn off just as quickly as it does on at any given moment.

That's where belief comes in. Tony always tells me "it's all in your head" whenever I face a challenge. I'm slowly learning he's right. If I approach a situation with a positive frame of mind, I'm far more likely to succeed than if I fill my head with negative thoughts and words. If I believe I'm going to accomplish it, success is mine for the taking. And if I don't always succeed, at least I attempted it in positivity versus negativity.

I've had a lot of pep talks with my girls over the years, and I'm sure we'll continue to have them for many more to come. Cassidi never fails to roll her eyes at me when I quote my favorite saying "positivity attracts positivity". I'm a firm believer in this and do my best to live it every day. I fall off the wagon occasionally, but that little voice in my head starts chattering away. I'm glad I have her even though she can be REALLY annoying at times. There are even times when I roll my own eyes at her!