I like Just 10

I waited by the door for my daughter to come home from school yesterday. I wanted to catch her as soon as she came home to make sure we had time for her Just 10. I learned more about her school day in those ten minutes than I have learned in months.

One of her first comments was "I like our ten minutes." So do I.

This morning I sat down with my son before his bus came. Sitting down isn't something that always comes easily to him but in less than 2 minutes we were thoroughly engrossed in conversation and enjoying some good laughs to start the day.

A lot of our lives are filled with problems. We struggle with financial worries, with less than good health, with disappointments and frustrating jobs, we are often focus of someone's anger or harsh judgments. At times life feels so out of control. It's easy to forget that there are a few very important things we can control. Choosing how to spend our time is really choosing how we spend our lives.

Even when we feel trapped by situations and circumstances, we can still choose how to respond. We can become victims or we can participate in our lives by re-framing things to our advantage. We can look for the positive in each other, in ourselves and even in the troubles in our lives. While it is a skill that requires much practice and patience, the alternative stinks. I'd much rather be the caged bird that sings, than the one who never learns to sing at all.