today

Half Empty Or Half Full?

I know that I am not the only one who has a person in their life that just can't seem to see the glass as half full. Sometimes my perspective is so off, I can't even see the damn glass. For the most part, I like to see mine as half full. Especially when drinking German wine!

I believe we seek out people in our lives whose glasses appear more full than our own. I am fortunate to have a few of those people in my life. I even married one. But what about those "half empty glassed folks"? The ones that see you with a fuller glass? I always seem to have at least one that can't catch the hint that I am through listening to them constantly complain. I know I am a good listener, but I am not getting paid for my advice and it really irks me.

I know it is futile to tell someone who has a pessimistic outlook that things are not so bad. Again it depends on your perspective. What's bad to you may be completely tolerable to someone else. Having a positive realistic perception has been proven beneficial to good mental health. There are studies that it can prevent illness, including heart disease. This realistic perception can also be negative and lead to depression. I think people prone to depression may actually have more realistic perceptions of their own image, importance, and abilities than the average person. People who see the glass as half full may be kidding themselves. They might even be somewhat delusional. However, I guess you have to be somewhat delusional in order to cope with some situations in life.

German weather offers many days with grey skies. Today was one of those days. Grey can be a beautiful color when you are able to see what a contrasting background it makes against a field of wildflowers, pastel stuccoed villages, or the beginnings of Autumn in the trees.

Life is much easier to go through with a half full glass, so pour yourself some more wine and quit your bitching!