It has now been a month since we arrived in Thailand. I am assuming that you have all been anxiously wondering and waiting for an update on the promises I made before we came to Thailand. You can read about it in the post I wrote here, but the overview was that I was choosing to:
1) Be more positive. Mostly meaning that I would try not to let circumstances and situations make me a negative Nancy (sorry to all you positive Nancy’s out there).
2) Find and join a bible study here in Thailand.
3) I would make a habit of some sort of physical activity or exercise.
Let me start with number one, because that is where most people start and I just don’t think it’s necessary to try to be different tonight. Being positive when things go awry can be so difficult, okay maybe not to everyone, but this is my Mount Everest. I have written on occasion of my realistic attitude, what some people call a negative attitude in the past. Sometimes my hard attitude can cause discomfort for me, not to mention the fact that my two-year old and my loving husband get a little sick of walking around with a ticking time bomb all the time. I desperately crave to be soft, gentle, and flexible when it comes to not only travel, but also in my relationships with others. With that in mind I made the promise that I would work to put a positive spin on things that would normally get me down or frustrated.
As with any goal one makes, it seems that as soon as it is made, things in this world come along that make you want to throw up your hands and give up as soon as you start. We made it to Thailand and settled in comfortably in Hua Hin. We found a great villa and made it our (temporary) home just in time for my mom to come visit. Then we had a huge storm, with flooding, falling tree’s (trees that fell onto our house!), no power for 2 very hot days, and no running water for 12 days. Mom was getting to experience real life in a developing country, when all I wanted to show her was the life of luxury, fun, and beauty that could be had in this amazing country. Then I got sick, then Z got sick, just a cold, but one that hung on for what seemed like a long time. My stupid expectations were squashed and thrown in the burn pile.
I am writing all this, not to complain, but to be real, and also because I was so impressed that I was still rocking my positive attitude through all the crap. I was doing so well, then the dreaded three letter acronym that women dread every month kicked in, PMS! Suddenly, my cranky, moody other self kicked in. I am pretty sure that mom felt nostalgic as I pretty much slightly acted as I had as a teenager. Not my finest couple of days. Luckily, I was able to pick up and start again despite the massive waves of uncontrolled emotions and make Mom’s last couple of days feel like she was in a fun place instead of in a crazy house.
So, I have restarted my goal to put everything on a positive spin, and feel that there will be more and more PMS’s time between each episode when I fall back into my realistic negative attitude. I am truly a work in progress, as long as I keep improving, I count that as a win.
Now onto goal number two, finding a Bible study to join. Thailand is a mainly Buddhist country, but there are a few small churches here in Hua Hin. We are thinking of trying one we found nearby that seems to share our same thoughts on faith and Christianity. It is pretty small so it takes some gumption for us to go, but I am hoping that going will be a way to meet other people of faith, plus help me achieve my second goal. It will also help with my first goal. I am a much happier, patient, and kind person when my life is focused on what is most important to me, my faith. So keep your fingers crossed, or if you so desire, please pray that we will find a temporary church home that encourages and supports us.
Goal number three has not been hard to accomplish. We have a pool! And especially since I was using it to bathe (no, I did not use soap, but any cool water to rinse off the sweat was good for me) for a couple of weeks, swimming seems to be what my physical activity is for the time being. Yes, I do admit that I can only dog paddle, but have you done that for 10 laps? Your arms will be burning in no time. Demi Moore body here I come… okay, maybe I do not want to be that buff. I would be happy just to be a healthy, strong, me.
So there are my updates. I will update you again if anything changes drastically, but lets all hope that this will the last post about it until I realize that I have perfected myself, because that is what it’s all about, right?
What kind of goals do you wish to achieve for yourself? Do you have any tips, advice, or kicks in the butt to motivate me to stay the course? Leave a comment and let me know, I appreciate advice more than I like to admit.
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