There's Two Sides To Everything

September 2020

Just like there’s darkness for the light, there’s two sides of every situation, and it feels like I’ve been tested to see the lighter side this week. It’s been one thing after another, and whilst I might be slightly annoyed, I’m still smiling. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve caught myself laughing about some of the crazy things that happened this week.

I’ve been locked out of my work IT system, thanks to an error when someone in HR moved me from one cost centre to another, and essentially forgot the latter part and therefore cancelled my access. That kicked off a series of phone calls, a lot of time spent waiting on hold, a few trips to the office to see if I could get around not having a remote working connection, and explaining the situation to many many people. But on the flip side, I’ve barely attended any meetings because I haven’t been able to see my work diary, and I haven’t had to update any documents or presentations, because I don’t have access. So, around all the access issues and attempts at a resolution, I’ve spent my days on me; I’ve worked on my projects and spent my time really thinking things through.

Also this week, I’ve spent more time than I should have, in one store, because the cashier incorrectly entered the value of one of the gift cards that I used to pay for my purchase, and therefore overcharged me when I was paying the balance on my credit card. There was no point in getting angry with the cashier who felt bad enough about the error. There was also no point in getting cranky when the store manager couldn’t figure out how to fix the error and credit me back the overcharged amount. So I waited patiently and figured that there was some other reason why I shouldn’t be leaving that store just yet.

I’ve had half a tin of Milo pour out into the sink because the lid wasn’t shut properly, and it came off when I turned the tin onto the side, to dust off the Milo that had been spilled in the rim. Angry? No. I’m just happy that it all fell in the sink and not on the kitchen floor, so it was easy to clean up.

This week, I’ve had not-so-nice people try to provoke me and then get grumpy at me when I didn’t provide the reaction that they were hoping to extract from me; Like that’s my problem. Their poor attitude has only made me strength my boundaries and stance this week, on what I believe in, and further raise my minimum standards. No more dealing with people who aren’t worth my time or energy.

I’ve had delivery drivers park their vans across or simply blocking my parking spot, but I’ve been grateful that each time it happened this week, I’ve either not been in a rush (so waiting a few extra minutes didn’t matter), or I was just dropping something off before heading back out, so I didn’t need to use my own parking spot.

I’ve spent many a night not being able to sleep despite being extremely tired, so I’ve used the time to rest or do something else until I fall asleep, and have made a conscious effort to not be so hard on myself for not being able to just sleep.

I’ve picked up on lots of other people’s energy, sometimes being bowled over with their emotions; But instead of taking it on as my own or trying to fix it, I’ve been grateful for the ability to feel it, before I sent it back with loving and supportive energy.

And it’s now Friday night and I’m looking forward to the weekend after such a crazy week. I’m not going to think about my work laptop that’s at the office being completely rebuilt, and how I’ll have to go in on Monday to pick it up. I’m not going to worry about whether or not I’ll have all my access up and running again, and if all the cost centre details have been corrected. I’m also not going to worry about the work that I’ll need to catch up on next week.

Right now, I’m focusing on the fact that I can’t and won’t be doing anything work-related over the weekend. I’m focusing on the few things that I want to get done tonight, for me, before heading to bed, so that tomorrow, the kids and I can spend the entire day having another super adventure together. I’m focusing on the fact that school term activities are over for a few weeks, and that I don’t have to worry about uniforms. I’m focusing on the fact that my work discourages us being in the office and that I can work from home and therefore spend time with my kids during the school holidays.

Because for every one thing that goes wrong, there’s at least one thing that goes right. For every situation, there’s an alternative. For every thing that happens, you can decide if it’s happening to you, or for you, and you can choose to react or to respond.

Without darkness, there is no light. And in this mixed up world that is life, I choose to be a bright, shining star.