It’s New Year’s Eve! Have you made your resolutions? This year I am promising myself (and my poor husband) that I will be more organized. It might be impossible though with two kids, a work from home job and a husband who works 50 plus hours a week. The house tends to get disorganized pretty quickly. So my other resolution is to be more positive and happier in the new year.
I’ve never been one to see the glass half full. It’s always been a challenge to not see the negative in a certain day or a certain person. But since dealing with the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis for my daughter, I have gone about as low as a person can. My initial reaction was that I would be burying my daughter instead of vice versa. But I have come back up from those depths of despair and learned to have hope again. Most of my inspiration has come from other families of children with CF, but I have also learned from my husband, whose despair sunk even deeper than mine did after her diagnosis. He has since come back from those dark days and is happier than ever.
Having hope and a positive attitude will not only help me to be happier in 2011 and beyond, but will help my daughter and her sister throughout their lives. Leading by example is the best, most effective way to teach children how to live the best life. By showing my children that there is always good in every day and positives to every negative, they will learn to look on the bright side.
While living with CF will be a challenge for my daughter, it will also teach her patience, compassion and empathy. With each treatment and each doctor’s visit, she will be keeping herself healthy. If she has hope for her future, she can plan for one despite the fact that her condition can leave her desperately ill at any moment in time. Any part I can play in helping her stay healthy, focused and hopeful I will gladly take. So here’s to a happy, healthy and hopeful 2011!