Reece Gardner: How happy do you want to be today?

How happy do you want to be today? You can make that decision. We all have so much to be happy about and thankful for, but we seem inclined to dwell on the perils of today, such as our current gas shortages, price increases, Covid-19, civil unrest, election irregularities, etc., to the point that we find ourselves longing for the "good old days." But just how "good" were those days?

Let's take a moment to look back again at just a couple of examples of those days, say eighty years ago. Baths consisted of one big tub filled with hot water.

The man of the house had the privilege of the nice, clean water, then all the sons and men of the house, then the women, then the children, and, last of all, the babies. The water was so dirty by then that you could actually lose someone in it. Hence the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water." Another example: Clothes washing day was just that - ALL DAY.

It was done outside with the clothes placed in boiling water in a large iron tub with plenty of lye soap. The clothes were then rinsed and hung up on a clothes line to dry, and then taken inside to be ironed by an iron that had been placed by the fireplace to get it hot enough to do the ironing. Wow, "The Good Old Days." Regardless of the circumstances of life, It is really our attitude toward life that makes the difference, and we are born with the CAPACITY to control our attitudes. The fact is that attitude is more important than education, money, circumstances, failures, and successes. It can make or break a home, a company, or a church. Having a good attitude also helps us to look at others in a more positive light. In a previous Column

I talked about "redneck" jokes, most of which tend to place people in a negative light, but can be turned to positive depending upon how we look at them, such as: You know you are a redneck if, (1) It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "one nation under God,"; (2) You never protested about seeing the Ten Commandments posted in public view; (3) You bow your head when somebody's praying; (4) You stand and place your hand over your heart when the National Anthem is played; (5) You respect your elders and you raise your children to do the same; (6) You've never burned an American flag, nor do you intend to do so; and (7), You know what you believe and you're not afraid to say so.

Now for a little humor: Two senior ladies were out for a Sunday drive in a huge car. Neither of them could see much over the dashboard. When they came to an intersection, the light was red yet they kept on cruising through. The passenger thought to herself, "I feel like I'm losing it, but I swear we just drove through a red light."

A few minutes later they drove through another red light. The passenger was almost certain that the light had been red but was still slightly concerned that she might be mistaken, so she decided to give the driver one more chance. As they were approaching the next intersection, she paid a great deal of attention.

This time the light was definitely red, yet just as before they sped past it. "Susan," the passenger yelled, "Do you know we just ran through 3 red lights in a row? We could have been killed." "Oh, am I driving?" came the reply.

Have a really WONDROUS day!