Just ten days ago, Vienna, the city where I live, came out of a long lockdown.

We had the opportunity to eat and drink coffee in a restaurant, after almost seven months. From what it seems, a great part of the world is starting to win the battle over the corona pandemic.

To the question of whether the corona pandemic brought something bad, the answer is most likely yes. We are used to giving such an answer when we experience shock or something that gets us out of our comfort zone without our will. Hence, such experiences prove to be the most valuable lessons.

More important than what happened and what we can not change, is what we learned from it?  What resources did we gain from this experience?

Could it be that we have learned to appreciate more the things we have taken for granted? To value freedom of choice after feeling that we literally lose it.

How will we use that freedom of choice? What decisions will we make for ourselves, what choices will we make concerning the goals we want to achieve?

All these questions lead us closer to ourselves, and thus to better relations with others. If we know how to value freedom of choice in ourselves, we will know more about respecting the freedom of choice of others. To find points of connection towards common interests or goals, instead of focusing on points of division.

Life gives us many proofs that things can not be seen as black or white, but as black and white and all the colors in between.

Because if there is no darkness, how will we recognize the light? If night doesn’t exist, how will we know what the day looks like? If there is no failure, how would we enjoy success?
These are questions to which the answer is that everything is relative.
We do not live in a laboratory with the ability to anticipate every step and know that move A leads to move B. There is no general rehearsal in life, so how would we know which step or decision we would later name as a mistake or a failure?
Maybe is better to talk about the experiences and lessons they offer.

And those lessons are our resources. Including those experiences that we call mistakes. Because these experiences enrich us with knowledge about our preferences and needs. And how to avoid a similar negative outcome in the future.

Many times in our life we can found ourselves in a situation or circumstances we don’t like. Like in the corona pandemic. But we have a choice of how to position ourselves in these situations. Instead of passively waiting for bad things to change into positive ones, actively seeking the best outcome for us in these given circumstances.

So one gift from me this month is one tip.
When you find yourself in a situation you do not want, instead of the sentence “why is this happening to me”, ask yourself  “what in these circumstances can I do for myself?”

There is a quote from an unknown author who says:

“The happiest people don’t have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything they have.”

Have a joyful month.