Sometimes my “glass half full” attitude can produce some of the best memories- if I do say so myself.
For much of the summer of 2018, I was in Washington, DC taking in the sights and spending time with important people in my life. Unfortunately, this also included 100-degree days and humidity, as I had truly never experienced before. I felt like a damp, wilting flower most of the time.
Have I mentioned that my favorite season is winter and my very favorite holiday is the first snowfall (an actual floating holiday in my life and business)? So you can only imagine the extra effort it took to keep a happy face and positive attitude during the adventures which often included two kids — who I am certain would have been very content playing video games in the air conditioning all day long. (But it was not going to happen!)
One particularly excruciatingly humid day, after finding cool relief amongst the exhibits at the National Gallery of Art, we decided to make one more stop before going home. The National Archives were only 7 blocks away and the kids really needed to see the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights up close and personal (said the adults). I mean, we were in D.C., so time to take advantage of all the history there was to offer. Now here is where that “glass half full” attitude of mine comes into play. As we walked out of the museum to head over to the archives, it started to rain. A certain adult in our group thought we should hail a cab or summon an Uber.
But I exclaimed, “It’s only a few blocks and the rain will feel SOOOOO good in this heat!”
After a little discussion, my positive attitude prevailed and off we went.
Oh you know what’s coming, right? You see this movie scene playing out, don’t you?
Me: Soaked through and amused.
Yes, a few blocks away the skies opened up. I mean down-poured. Flash-flooding type of rain. And no matter what we did- where we ran for shelter, we were getting soaked. So, what did this woman filled with positive attitude say, “let’s just keep going because we are wet already”. By the time we walked into the National Archives, you could literally wring out our clothes, shoes and bag and now we were freezing from the blasting air conditioning. The other three were not a happy bunch, but I just kept laughing at the absurdity of the situation.
A few days later, it was our last day in the city and I did not want to let the rain stop us. No one wants to sit inside on the last day. Time for some adventures. However, this time I knew I needed to redeem myself from the prior soppy adventure. Solution: I bought 4 of the most fantastic umbrellas I could find at a moment’s notice. We were going to tackle this adventure in style. We danced in the rain. We laughed and splashed and twirled the umbrellas. More great memories- just a little drier this time.
Making memories. Making fun. Making lemonade from lemons.
These stories will serve as a great reminder to me on the days that I feel defeated or when circumstances are overwhelming or fraught with obstacles. Time to dig in deep and pull out my positive attitude and maybe that colorful umbrella.
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