This is an all too common phrase. You probably hear it at least once a week - if you are anything like me, once a day. But what does it actually mean? To some, it's a simple saying that they don't really pay attention to when someone says it. To others, there is a deeper meaning.
This week I have found a deeper meaning in this little phrase. It was through trials, tears, and stress that I was able to find peace of mind with this quote. Sometimes life just does not go your way. One thing after another happens and before you know it, you are sitting in your car crying because there was a car accident and you cannot get into your neighborhood. Sounds selfish right? Oh, it is. This is where the phrase comes into play: When nothing goes right, go left. To me, it's a simple way of encouraging you to change the way you think.
The night I realized this was the night I cried in my car. Before that happened, my car was returned to my possession but waiting at the dealer to get my car took a small eternity. Impatience starting running over me because I wanted my car, I wanted to get home, and I wanted to get all my work done. Finally, I got my car and was on my merry way...until I got to my neighborhood - there was a car accident blocking everything. I could not get in and it was then that I started crying. It was also then that I wiped my tears and thought to myself, "why am I crying when someone is out there fighting for their life...my only problem is that I can't get into my neighborhood." That's when my thinking began to change.
Most of the time, people only think about themselves. A couple weeks ago an amber alert came on my phone at 12 o'clock in the morning and it frightened me. After I saw it, I sent up a quick prayer for the family and returned to bed. The next morning, I looked on Twitter and people were complaining that they lost sleep while someone was out there trying to find their child. That is where our thinking needs to change. We need to quit being selfish and we need to see the positive in the negative.
This does not happen overnight. Yet if you honestly try and take a negative situation and make it positive, everything around you starts to change. If you wake up late and barely make it to work on time, at least you have a job. If your car runs out of gas or blows a tire, at least you have a car to drive. If someone steals something from you, maybe it's a sign that something better is on its way. When you lose a friendship or any relationship; they no longer added value to your life.
If you take anything away from this, I hope you learn to see the positive in the negative. We are only human - life tends to hit us hard and at the worst times, but if you change your thinking you can change your life.
If nothing goes right, go left.
