With life come certain discrete patterns. Think about the last event you eagerly anticipated, perhaps a vacation or simply a get together with old friends. How do you feel when that event passes? If like me, you may experience an emotional letdown. Man, you just went from great anticipation to over. Or, did you?
A change in mindset does wonders. Reject the temptation to see the end as over. Instead view the point in time as a start point, essentially just the beginning. This shift in mindset probably will take a concentrated effort but the results remain worthwhile.
Tim Wambach and I at the Handicap This booth. Photo: Sarah Wambach
Personally I most recently put forth said effort the Sunday evening after the Chicago Abilities Expo. I traveled to Chicago to assist at the Handicap This booth and overall to network. What a time at booth 122! From chatting with fellow vendors to talking to families in attendance everything went incredibly well. While waiting for the elevator Sunday morning a father even recognized me for my role as #CPChatNow co-host!
All in all I enjoyed an amazing, amazing time at the Chicago Abilities Expo. Understandably then you can empathize with the letdown which filled me Sunday evening. A letdown magnified by the fact back in Cleveland my day-to-day pressures awaited me.
So I sat in my hotel room on the 16th floor staring out at my window’s view. Sitting there I suddenly came upon an epiphany. Rather than the Chicago Abilities Expo ending, I realized I’m returning home to opportunities just beginning! The business cards I collected represent new articles to write. Amongst those business cards I also possess two potential new clients. Just the beginning indeed!
The view from my hotel room Chicago Abilities Expo weekend.
Surely my Chicago Abilities Expo example demonstrates a situation where the upside makes shifting my mindset pretty easy. Sometimes though, you really must search hard to discover the new beginning. For instance, take my friend Alex’s death last year.
Alex passed away February 1st and I received the news February 2nd. His funeral in the Cleveland area happened February 11th. In a strange way I looked forward to the services. To reminisce about Alex with those who he impacted offered comfort in the grieving process.
Once home from the funeral however I did not know what to do with myself. The idea Alex’s life ended roughed me up. No more Facebook likes on my photos. No more encouraging text messages. No more spending time together. All proved over.
Months passed and I eventually came to see Alex’s passing as just the beginning, just the beginning to honor his memory and keep his spirit alive. My volunteer work for Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities’ Euclid Adult Activities Center gained new meaning. Alex helped get me into volunteering. Thus every smile I can spark volunteering extends back to Alex, keeping his spirit going.
Ultimately every end leads to a new beginning. You might require some time to find said beginning but the beginning exists.
Assist me in making this point. Leave a comment below sharing how an end turned into just the beginning for you. Thanks for the help and for reading.
