Stop Being a Miserable Cow

My mother has said it all of my life: "Attitude is everything, pick a good one".

Oh how I grew to loathe that phrase. I mean, how much effort does it take to have a lousy attitude? Almost none. How much effort do I have to put into having a "good" attitude? A lot. A lot of effort.

So what did my mother get me for Christmas this past December?

Let me give you some hints: it's made of metal, it's obnoxiously large, and it has one of her favorite quotes on it.

You guessed it. She bought a sign with her favorite quote on it and gave it to me for Christmas. And she expects me to hang it up in my room. In fact, she bought the same sign for my sisters as well. Now we can all remember her famous words.

The exact sign my mother gave me for Christmas.
Image found here. 

I loved making comments all of Christmas day about how "great" my present from mom was and how much I just "loved" it. The first time I cracked the joke it got a few giggles, but my jabs soon grew old. Finally, one of my sisters stepped in and said what only a sister can: "Mary Kate, stop being a miserable cow."

Ouch. Not only am I miserable, but I'm also a cow?

As the years pass, I have come to realize the wisdom in the words of my mother's favorite quote and the power behind choosing your attitude. Actually putting this principle into practice is a different story, though. It takes a lot less thought and effort to feel miserable. And let's face it -- who doesn't love being miserable every once in a while? I sure do.

But it's definitely not the attitude I should try to adopt frequently and certainly not daily. Negativity can act like a poison and squash our zeal for life.

We have a lot to live for. And if you don't believe that, maybe you should take 5 minutes and make a list. I'm sure you can think of something, even if it's small.

A good attitude might not be "everything" but it certainly helps keep us from becoming miserable cows. So if you are a depressed animal, chewing grass and spitting it up mindlessly and mooing occasionally but not really interacting with your other cow buddies and enjoying the sunshine and the green pasture, then consider getting yourself one of these signs and hanging it up where you (and others) can view it daily. Maybe even hang it up in your work place. Who knows? It could boost productivity.

Oh, and a note to my mother... This is my public proclamation. You are right. I can control my attitude and I might as well pick a good one. 

Okay. I said it. Now please don't use this post against me.