I was at the supermarket on the Fourth of July because I had run out of dog food. This is a sure crisis in my house.
Of course the supermarket was PACKED. I had to park just about as far as possible from the store and still be on their property, and even then I had to squeeze into a too-small spot because it was the only one left. By the time I managed to thread my way through the store, stand on line behind three equally impatient people, and roll my cart back through the parking lot, I was pretty cranky.
I was ranting to myself about inconsiderate people who stand in the middle of aisles and won’t move, or the careless people who don’t take the extra five seconds to put their cart in a corral and let them loose to roll around the parking lot and become a nuisance to everyone. After dumping forty pounds of dog food in the back of my station wagon, I set off to return MY cart because even though I was cranky, I was still considerate.
On my walk, I passed a tiny lady with a huge SUV, who had just finished loading her car. My mouth opened and I asked if I could return her cart for her. She looked at me like I was speaking gibberish for a second, then smiled, thanked me, and handed over her cart.
And suddenly, the cranky mood evaporated. I stood a little taller, and walked with a spring in my step. It felt really GOOD to be nice!
Okay, I know this isn’t rocket science here. But a positive attitude and positive visualization can have a big impact on your health. People going through treatment for cancer often are told to visualize their white blood cells as heroic knights going into battle against (and defeating) the invading cancer cells. Hypnotism helps your mind focus on positive sensations and block out pain.
Have you read the book (or seen the movie) Pay It Forward? The idea is that every person does something nice for three people. Rather than getting paid BACK, the three people are asked to pay it forward and do something nice for three more people each. The ripple effect moves outward pretty quickly — nine people becomes twenty-seven people, and so on. Do something positive today, and you may just find yourself feeling better.