For many people, the stress of everyday life—where you go from stressful situation to another—can seem overwhelming. Between work, family, social commitments, and even the daily onslaught of negative news, stress levels across the board are rising. As a result, conditions like anxiety, depression, OCD behaviors, and insomnia are on the rise.
Fortunately, in many cases, you have a choice. No matter what the stressful situation is, you can choose to react to it positively or negatively. You can choose to let life weigh you down. Or you can choose to rise above the challenges.
Consider this old story and think about the deeper meaning being illustrated:
A farmer had an old dog. One day his dog fell into a dry well. At first, the farmer was at a loss of what to do. The dog was probably also at a loss of what to do. Talk about a stressful situation!
The farmer thought, “It’s an old dog. Why don’t I put an end to its misery. He could either starve to death, or I could bury the dog and cover up the well at the same time.”
So the farmer started shoveling the dirt into the well. At first, the dog barked furiously. The farmer felt sad but continued filling up the hole. Then came absolute silence. After several more shovelfuls of dirt, the farmer suddenly saw the dog wagging his tail and kicking dirt into the well.
With each shovel of dirt, the dog shook off the dirt that came on him, and then got on top of the pile. The old dog eventually “rode” the pile of new dirt to the top.
Tip: Do you allow yourself to be buried under the clutter of life—every single stressful situation? Or do you shake off all the dirt, get on top of the situation, and use the dirt as part of your experience?
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