Got a contagious ‘tude?

Howdy!  I had a great time this past weekend in the College Station, Texas area. Everywhere I went I was hailed with the Texas A & M Aggie greeting, “howdy!” So something must have rubbed off (this is horrifying my handsome half who bleeds University of Texas burnt orange!). The attitude of those who enthusiastically greet strangers in this fashion is contagious.  Even if you are in a bad mood or having a bad day, you can’t help but smile at the warmth and hospitality inherent in that simple, folksy word. Being in the company of folks with a good – one might even say a great –  attitude just lifts your spirits. It did mine and I wasn’t even in a bad mood!

Besides lifting someone’s spirits, being around such people might also make us yearn for  – even envy – such a positive, cheerful attitude  – yet it seems elusive and unattainable for many. Life can be hard and heartbreaking which tends to make some folks sad, bitter and negative. Deep down, one of the greatest human desires is for love and acceptance.  However, being sad, bitter and negative  makes us unlikable/unloveable, driving people away – which is the very thing not wanted.  

From experience,  we know that some people are easier to like/love  than others. The difference between being easy to like/love or not is  – if you think about the people in your life – that those with a good attitude are the ones you prefer to be around.  If you desire to be the kind of person that others want to be around, then the question you have to ask yourself is: am I an easy person to like/love?  If, upon honest reflection, you have to admit that you might be just a tad difficult (has anyone ever called you “high maintenance”  or perhaps another distasteful, derogatory name?), and you want things to be different, then maybe an attitude adjustment is in order.  

Which now brings me to today’s Medora’s Simple Truth – and it is perhaps one of the greatest, most helpful truths: you can truly change your life by changing your attitude.  How you think and what you think about controls your actions. And, if you don’t/can’t/won’t control your attitude, it may very well end up controlling you.