Never say never! I learned years ago how true this is…so I never say “never.” The problem I have, however, is that I think never, such as my husband will never do this or that; my kids will never do anything to disappoint me; my friends will never not be there for me; my sisters will never get in arguments over stupid things. Okay! You already know that my thinking has been askew! I—definitely—have learned the hard way that “never” needs to not only be eliminated from speech, but also from thoughts!

Recently one of my children did something that this offspring—in my thoughts—would NEVER do! I would have bet anyone a million dollars—like I have that much money—that this particular child was incapable of the specific action that has caused me such remorse. But alas! I’ve had to eat my thought! The deed was done!

The longer I live in this world, especially as a mother, I continue to be amazed. The views I have in my thoughts are often challenged, sometimes in surprising and wondrous ways; sometimes in ways that are far in the other direction. This latest “child incident” took me so far into the direction away from wondrous that for the first time in years I stayed awake all night in an anguished state. Never would I have thought I would be in this place!

I plan to continue to be an optimist…this is my nature. I will, however, add a little more realism to my thoughts. I will also try to eliminate “never” from my thoughts, words and actions. I will NEVER use “never” again!