I generally think of myself as a fairly optimistic person, a bit south of Pollyanna, actually. But lately my alter ego, “Negative Nelly” has taken the lead. She’s more a bit south of Darth Vader. She’s that little voice that points out the negatives in my life – from people to places to everything in between. I give her props for creativity, as she can find the down side of just about anything!

It’s kind of like being a non-smoker in a room full of smokers. You may come out a non-smoker, but the smoke has permeated your hair and clothes, it’s internalized in your lungs, and you carry the stench with you - until you choose to change those clothes, toss them in the laundry, and take a shower.

Some of her favorite lines usually include the words, “it’s not enough… you could do better… look at what the other person has… it’s not fair...”, and similar words that are the termites to my thankfulness. She’s the daughter of that snake in a garden long ago that hissed doubt in Eve’s ear… and thus Negative Nelly was conceived. She is the voice that breathes life into discontent, dissatisfaction, disgruntlement and displeasure. Yep… she is the part of me that is the “Diva of Diss”!!

Instead of a soft spirit, I am sharp-edged and hardened. Gratitude is replaced with grumbling. Blessings become bitterness. Sweetness sours to sarcasm. It’s not pretty… at all… from the inside out, it’s just not pretty. Or welcoming. Or someone I ever want to be around. She settles over me with an attitude that stinketh!

It’s kind of like being a non-smoker in a room full of smokers. You may come out a non-smoker, but the smoke has permeated your hair and clothes, it’s internalized in your lungs, and you carry the stench with you - until you choose to change those clothes, toss them in the laundry, and take a shower. Negativity (and what we do with it) is a lot like that, isn’t it?

Chuck Swindoll has said that life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it – it’s all about the attitude. In times like this, I need to tattoo this to my forehead.

So today I choose to change. Today I will wipe the “diss” off my lenses, own my ‘tude, get down on my knees to ask God (and my longsuffering loved ones) to forgive me for being such a self-focused crabapple, and get on with the business of being grateful and thankful for the incredible life I have… right this second. It’s like the old hymn said, “Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your blessings, see what God has done.”

Won’t you join me today? Together let’s wash off and banish our negativity, exercise our grateful muscles and work them out till we drop with thanksgiving!