“What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”
The quote above from John Lubbock was printed at the top of the page of my Day Designer planner one day last week. You see, each day has quotes, some of them sort of feel like a fortune cookie (I mean that in a good way!) but some, like this one, resonate with me a little more! I read it over and over again and it really hit me and made me think about perspective.
Perspective is something that I rely on a lot to pull me out of bad moods, down days, or just negative situations of any kind that I may struggle with. When talking to friends about issues that they may be going through, I use the same tactic…put it into perspective. It can generally almost always be worse, and usually that makes me feel better! But that approach is a little reactionary, really. I love that this quote has a proactive approach. To see the world through rose-colored glasses. It is saying that what we go out and look for, what we expect to find, and what we ultimately think about those situations and how they impact us is largely up to us and our attitude.
If you’re optimistic, you’ll see more positive things throughout your day and in your life because those are the things that you are focusing on. If you have a tendency to be more of a debbie-downer (for lack of a better term 🙂 ) and see all of the negative things going on in your life, those are what will always be more evident to you day to day. You will have a hard time seeing the small things that are positive and you will miss the opportunity to let them brighten your day or your mood.
Something I try to do is see the positives in most situations but that doesn’t mean I’m the world’s most optimistic person. I can be brought down and get into bad moods sometimes, but lately I’ve felt it more easy to focus on the good. Reading my daily devotional is very helpful to me personally when it comes to seeing the good, because God’s goodness is all around us and focusing on negatives or worries draws us away from seeing that and building a relationship with Him. You may have other ways of practicing an optimistic perception of things going on in your life! I think it’s important to find something that can help you with that because the world will try it’s very best to show you the bad things if you allow it to do so!
One of my devotionals from over the weekend was about trusting the Lord beyond our own understanding and I felt like it went really well with this post. Beyond things that trouble us we must trust Him: “Trust is a golden pathway to heaven. When you walk on this path, you live above your circumstances. My glorious Light shines more brightly on those who follow this path in Life. Dare to walk on the high road with Me, for it is the most direct route to heaven. The low road is circuitous: twisting and turning in agonizing knots. There the air hangs heavy–and dark, ominous clouds predominate. Relying on your own understanding will weight you down. Trust in Me absolutely, and I will make your paths straight.”
That place where the air hangs heavy…that is where we are when we are stuck focusing and obsessing on things that might not be going just as we want them to in our lives at this moment. That is where focusing on the blessings that you do have in your life, and putting it into perspective, is where you will start being in control of what you see. I just find that this helps me a lot and I hope both the John Lubbock quote and the devotional (either/or!) will help you in those times where dark clouds predominate.
top | necklace | jeans | booties | sunnies | earrings | clutch (similar)
Alright, so thanks for listening to my deep thoughts 🙂 Sometimes I just need to write out things that are on my heart, because generally there is always someone else possibly needing to hear the same thing!!
Let’s give a quick minute to this outfit though…this top is so dreamy!!! I’m not usually a huge ruffle fan, but this top does it right. And the V neckline is the perfect length, and also perfect for showing off my favorite layered necklace. It’s hard to beat a pair of nice jeans, a nice blouse, and casual booties & jewelry. Easy outfit for almost anything!! I also think the top would be SO HOT with a little miniskirt (like this one or this one) and some heels for date night (Valentine’s Day anyone?!)
Do you tend to focus on the negatives or positives? Is putting things into perspective a tactic that you use when you’re feeling down or helping another person through a struggle? What other things do you do in those times?
xo,
Bess
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