Here's Something About Crandall....I'm Not Sure If It Is a Good Thing or a Bad Thing, But It is Definitely a Thing

I can't say I was a HUGE Matrix fan, but I watched a couple of the movies, and always loved the idea of swirling up moments in time and being able to push them out of the way. Ever since then, I've pretended I can do this, too, when negative, awful crap comes at me. I see it coming, and I begin rolling it into a ball so that I am able to swoosh it to the side.

I think I should admit that I don't have this power at all. It it totally pretend.

Still, it's been my nature for most of my life to take the shit thrown at me and simply sculpt it into roses. I like to accentuate positivity, good, and joy, simply because we only have control of one thing in our life - attitude. In high school, I was called Eeyore and Charlie Brown. I was a Dougie Downer. But I flipped this around in my adult life. I choose to be upbeat and peppy. I choose hope.

Then there's the shitty-shit-shit that you can't control and no amount of positivity will help. It's just shitty. And the worst part is when such shitty comes forward on the road of good intentions. That's when I say the serenity prayer, and realize I have no control. It is still going to be the shittiest of shitty, I take it in my gut. 

So, while I learned excrement is the reality of those trying to earn angel wings, I know I can't win. I went to BJs, instead, thinking I might pick up Christmas gifts. I bought each of my graduate students a Kinder Egg. I didn't know they sold them in the U.S. and in my head I thought, "Wait, I can gift chocolate with a toy surprise in this country? Well, damn. That will make me happy."

I simply told them, "Here's my secret to success. When the world super sucks and you know how sucky it is, I hope you find a way to gift joy to someone else. That's the only Matrix magic I've ever been able to muster."

I mean, a toy. Chocolate. Hazelnut. Come on now. Absolute bliss. 

Yes, the ugly is still out there. And I bet these uglies would never imagine in a million years that they were the ugly I'm talking about. Even so, rather than let them kill my spirit and destroy my happiness, I'll continue to find a way to counter them with Joy.

Simple, childish, caring, and empathetic bliss. 

That is all. That's all I got.