I choose to be cheerful.

I have been less than pleasant at times for the past few months. Maybe even downright impossible to deal with. Just ask Kevin. I come home exhausted, frustrated, short-tempered, and just in an overall bad mood.

Let me give you a little look into a normal day in my life. I wake up around 7:00, I shower and get ready, I pack a breakfast and lunch, I am out the door by 7:30-7:45, I get my materials ready for the day, my students are in my room by 8:25, school begins by 8:30, I spend all day answering questions, putting out fires, and of course bestowing millions of brilliant ideas onto my precious students (or something like that...), at 3:10 they are dismissed, I spend from 3:10-3:30 cleaning up and putting things back where they belong, by 3:30 more days than not, I am headed to a meeting or a conference, if not, I am correcting papers or writing lesson plans. I leave school around 4:15-4:30 each day and head home to change my clothes and eat a quick dinner before I'm off to the studio for a night of teaching dance. I am often not back home until after 8:00pm and usually still have papers to grade, not even to mention spending time with Kevin or relaxing for a short while before I need to go to bed and begin it all again.

Now, please let me be very clear. I love my jobs. I love my life. Its just sometimes, it overwhelms me. Sometimes I forget that I chose this...all of it.

So yesterday I was browsing one of my favorite blogs (you can find it under Biblical Womanhood over on the right side of the screen in the "other blogs I like" section) when I came across this post. I was moved to tears by her beautiful words. This is exactly what has been on my heart lately.

Here is a very small (but beautiful) excerpt that especially spoke to me:
"As I've thought more on this experience, I've been reminded how little of Calvary Love I've been demonstrating in my life recently. Christ gave His all for me. He chose the beating, the mocking, the nails, the pain, the suffering, the thorns--for me. He did all of this not so I could live a life of selfish comfort and ease, but so I could follow in His steps and live a life poured out for others."

And so, my new goal in life is this. That I will make the choice every single morning to be cheerful. I will choose cheerfulness over grumpiness; I will choose joy over sorrow; I will choose gratefulness over jealousy; I will choose to use the blessings I have been so undeservingly granted to make the journey for someone else a little easier.

I want to live a life that will end with the beautiful sound of my Savior whispering "Well done, my faithful servent". That is my goal, to pour my life out for others with a cheerful heart.