I have some posts in the works that are baby related, but I’m not in the right mindset for it. I still don’t understand the shooting from yesterday. Newlyweds with a 6 month old baby go on a mass shooting spree?

This world we live in. It’s scary. When a mass shooting isn’t shocking anymore we know we’ve hit a new low.

On my Facebook feed I saw a quote from Samuel L. Jackson from 2012. “I don’t think it’s about more gun control. I grew up in the South with guns everywhere and we never shot anyone. This is about people who aren’t taught the value of life.”

Right when I was feeling down about the future of humanity, my friend shared this on Facebook. A 16 year old girl who beat cancer singing “this is my fight song.”

Yes, there are too many people who are not taught the value of life, but there are also many like this young girl who really understand what it’s like to have the gift of life. Her singing reminded me, we can’t let the bad, sad, terrible, scary and horrifying daily news be what defines our future.

Instead of being down and thinking about how nothing feels safe anymore, we have to do our best to be the best version of ourselves. Kindness is a choice. Not getting hung up on little things in life is a choice. Looking at the positive side of a situation is a choice.

Sometimes when I get upset about something little that happened in my day, I take a step back and imagine myself on a subway. I think about how every person on the subway has their own struggles. Then, as if that’s not enough to realize that it’s insignificant, I think of that subway in my city, and then my city in my country and my country in the world. And that what I was upset about is so so teeny-tiny compared to the big picture.

I’m not saying to just bottle everything up when something upsets you and move on. That’s not healthy either. It’s only natural and normal to feel upset and frustrated emotions. Give yourself a time, “I will be upset for the next 5, 10 minutes.” And then move on. Life’s too short. It’s not worth it. Give someone you love a hug. Did you know that giving a hug actually has physiological effects? Immediately after hugging someone the cortisol, the stress hormone we produce, reduces. Read more about the benefits of hugging here.

{Just to be clear, I am not referring to mental health issues or anxiety or real sadness. Those can’t be given 5 minutes and that’s it. Any serious issue should be dealt with.}

This post is referencing situations that I know I’m not alone in feeling very upset/hurt about in the moment, but when actually taking time to think about it, it was silly. For example, feeling hurt by a friend usually ends up being a miscommunication.

So yes I spent too much time looking at the sad news, reading the terrifying articles of how mass shootings are becoming the norm. But then I watched Kelly singing “fight song” with her head bald from chemo and I remembered that we are stronger than we think. We have a purpose. We need to keep living and contributing to the world even when there are too many people who are doing the opposite. We need to be active to continue to be the majority.

The very best way we can teach our children anything is to MODEL the behavior ourselves. They watch every move we make. They see how we dress, what we eat, and most importantly – how we treat others. Remember, you’re being watched. Even if they’re not actively watching you, they are taking everything in. It’s cute when they pick up a toy phone and copy how you say hello, but it’s also a good reminder that our actions and behaviors are on display for very impressionable minds.