It’s All About ‘Tude

Dr. Joshua Miele

I was having a pity party the day before a Ballroom Dance Competition. It was hot, I was tired, my legs were sore, we hadn’t rehearsed enough, I’d never remember all my steps, and on and on. I was being such a grump even my dogs were avoiding me. Fine. I can take a hint.

I settled on the couch and looked through some good-feel websites, hoping to get myself in a better place. I did more than that. I found a sensational source of positive inspiration, in the person of Dr. Joshua Miele, who at all of four years old, was burned and blinded by acid in a most unfortunate event, yet went on to create an extraordinary life for himself – and others. Dr. Miele has devoted his career to inventing ways for vision-impaired and other disabled people to navigate through life without bumping into obstacles and facing innumerable issues in the course of their day-to-day. Now, at 53, married with children, Dr. Miele is a Principal Accessibility Researcher with Amazon! He is charged with developing ways to make Amazon’s many products accessible to all, a job he relishes.

So much for my pity party! Dr. Miele speaks of never having considered himself a victim. He doesn’t think of himself as a walking tragedy, either. Just as someone who has had something happen that needed to be dealt with. His attitude is what fueled his desire to achieve a happy and successful life and by doing that he can help others do the same.

Attitude! It truly is what makes the difference. It’s not what happens to us, but how we respond to it that determines how any given event impacts our lives. Dr. Miele’s story reminded me once again, how much more important it is for us to mind our response than it is to moan and groan over the whatever. It’s irrelevant whether the event was traumatic or – like my pre-competition whining – simply annoying, our willingness to adopt a forward-looking, solution-oriented attitude can make all the difference between finding happiness versus dwelling in misery.  

I got myself up off that couch, strapped on my dancing shoes, and practiced my routines for the umpteenth time, only now with renewed hope and enthusiasm. With a panting audience of two happy dogs once again in attendance.

 

What’s Wrong With Me? Episode 45

Do you ever feel that you can’t do anything right? That you can’t get things to go your way no matter how hard you try? Rather than deciding something must be wrong with you – or with whoever’s not being helpful - discover in this podcast a different, far more powerful and empowering (!) approach!

Check out this latest episode!

Give Yourself a “PaRx”!

 

Amid the pandemic, when we were for the most part quarantined, urged to remain indoors as much as possible, I had an overwhelming urge to get out into nature. Living as I do in Southern California, I figured I could go find a beach and stare at the ocean for a bit without breaking any quarantine regulations.

I loaded the dogs into the car, and off we went. I found a nice stretch of deserted beach and walked myself and my pups down as close to the ocean as we could without getting wet. The fact that it was a cold gloomy overcast day didn’t bother me at all. I breathed in the salt air, the enormity of sea and sky until I felt full of nature’s bounty. Packed the dogs back in the car, and drove home feeling relieved and serene.

Little did I know that I’d just given myself a “PaRx” – a nature prescription – as increasing numbers of Canadian physicians have been giving to their anxious and depressed patients. The healing properties of a couple of hours per week in nature are amazing. It benefits young and old, rich and poor, healthy and not-so-healthy. Research shows that spending time in nature is good for pretty much anything that ails you. Parks, beaches, forests – your choice. Nature is healing in all her forms.

But what if you haven’t the time or access to a park/beach/forest? There’s an alternative: indoor plants. Yes indeed, studies show that spending time with houseplants also has many health benefits. Real plants (not plastic, sorry) can reduce stress, sharpen attention, provide cleaner air, boost productivity, and facilitate healing, to name but some of the benefits. What a gift.

So whether you indulge in that glorious weekly two hours outdoors, or simply spend time tending and enjoying your couple of perky houseplants, go for it! You’ve nothing to lose, and lots of benefits to gain.

What Now, Why Me?, Episode 44

Why does it seem like just when life is going along so nicely, something pulls the rug from under you? Like losing your job, relationship, car? Why can’t things just stay steady on course? Like forever? In this podcast, you’ll find out how to deal with some of the ordinary inevitable losses of life so you can open up to the new and better yet to come.

 

 

Check out this latest episode!

Transform Parent into Adult, Episode 43

Check out this latest episode!

“Miracles start to happen when you give as much energy to your dreams as you do to your fears.” - Richard Wilkins

 

A dear friend was lamenting the state of the world these days, and indeed, the wars, shootings, political and legal wrangles are disturbing to those who want peace and prosperity for all. In addition to the natural disasters which seem constant: fires, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes.

And yet, and yet . . . For every negative media blast there is somewhere on the planet a positive situation or event. An Uber driver sacrificing his day’s work (which he dearly needed) to help a stranger who’d been robbed at California’s Coachella music festival find her phone and a way home. That same stranger turning around and creating a GoFundMe to help the driver with his daughter’s cancer treatment bills, to the tune of over a hundred thousand dollars.

A person just passing by saw that a dog had fallen into bone-chilling water in a frozen lake in NY’s Central Park, and that the dog’s owner was having no luck getting the dog out. The good Samaritan gave it a go, tumbled into the water himself, yet managed to get both dog and himself out of the lake safe and sound. In Costa Rica, police stopped traffic to allow a sloth to cross a busy road – sloooowly, at a distinguished sloth pace.

I could go on and on. Good stuff happens every day in our world, in every corner of the world. The bad stuff grabs our attention, but you don’t have to park your attention there and camp out. If you feel called to action, great! You may decide to protest, petition or pray, whatever works for you. The important thing is that you also turn your attention to the good stuff.

That you pay attention to your dreams. Whether those dreams are for yourself, your family, your community, or our world matters not. What matters, as the quote states, is that you give at least as much energy to your dreams as you do to your fears. Because only as we move in the direction of our dreams, both in thought and action, can those dreams come to pass.

And then, yes, miracles can start to happen!

Stories of Inspiring Joy Podcast

 

I was given the opportunity to tell my personal story about the devastating fire that destroyed my home and the uplifting yet challenging journey that followed on the "Stories of Inspiring Joy" podcast.

To hear the podcast, go to: https://storiesofinspiringjoy.podbean.com/e/dr-noelle-nelson.