I Think I Can . . . I KNOW I Can!

One of the fun parts of being a grandparent (and there are MANY fun parts!) is having an opportunity to revisit childhood stories and songs. We spent yesterday evening helping out with our 2-1/2 year old twin grandchildren, Zachary and Olivia. Our son-in-law has been working in Chicago all week, so our daughter has appreciated having a couple extra sets of hands to help with bedtime. We sang a lot of songs that took me back to my own childhood and the childhood of my own three children, then read books.

One of their books is the classic, "The Little Engine That Could," which tells the story of the brave little train engine that took up the challenge to pull the toy train over the mountain to the children who were waiting in the village. It was hard, but the little engine had the consummate "can do" attitude and kept saying "I think I can, I think I can" all the way up the mountain. The moral of the story, of course, is to teach children the importance of persistence and having a positive attitude even in the face of a difficult situation.

"The Little Engine That Could" might be a good book for ALL of us to re-read from time to time, because we all need to be reminded to be persistent and remain positive, even when it's hard and even when we're not having a good time.

There are times when being on Take Shape for Life/Medifast 5&1 is exciting and we're absolutely love doing this program (c'mon, admit it!). Persistence and a positive attitude are easy to come by during those times, and we wish that every day we're on plan could be like that. Unfortunately, there are those OTHER days, and sooner or later we all have one (or two, or three . . . ). On those days, taking a chapter (pun intended!) from "The Little Engine That Could" might be in order :-). Bottom line is that there are lots of things we can't control, but we always choose our attitude.

The funny thing is that once we choose our attitude, our attitude often then makes the difference between whether we succeed or not. If we choose an "I think I can" attitude, before long we start to say, "I KNOW I can!" The positive attitude we choose generates energy that can carry us a long way, even on a challenging day. Choosing to be persistent in pursuing our goal, even on days we don't feel like, also has a wonderful way of invigorating us. I know that when I push through and stay on track, even when I don't want to, I never regret it!

So who's choosing an "I think I can" attitude today? Don't worry about tomorrow, or the day after that - just commit to staying on plan today and then choose your "can do" attitude. You'll reach your goal, I promise!

Blessings!