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Good Morning. Here is a great thought for the day:

The experience of white water rafting can teach us something useful. It made me aware that we have some human tendencies that work against us instead of for us. For example, if the river is pushing your raft into a downstream rock, you are supposed to lean toward the rock. Now, when a several ton rock is coming straight at you, there is nothing in your body that wants to lean toward that rock. Trust me, nothing! But if you lean away, your weight shifts toward the river, the water comes in your raft, and you get dumped. And, as with most lessons in life, the river will keep teaching you the hard way until you learn the lesson.

Relationships, especially close ones, can sometimes work that way. When the relationship is strained, and there is tension in the air, you are in the rapids! One instinct we have is to try to protect ourselves by shutting down communication or by communicating defensively. In river terms, we are "leaning away" from the relationship, and often we get dumped. It doesn't feel comfortable, but the better choice is to "lean in" to the relationship with more compassion, empathy, and communication. That's how we stay in the raft together and get to calmer waters, where we can once again enjoy the beautiful scenery of the journey.

Have a wonderful day.

"Each morning is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When the sun rises tomorrow this day will be gone forever, in its place will be something you have left — may it be something good. Follow your heart, it knows what to do."

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