Your Perceptions

Is
your glass half-empty, or is it half-full? I am sure many of you would
have come across this phrase. A decade ago if someone had asked me this
question, I would have honestly admitted that the glass is half-empty. Yes, I
was a pessimist back then. I had enough references to back by belief that no
matter what I had in my life, it was half-empty
and I was never content with it.

At
the age of 19, I had tried committing suicide, for I was clueless, lonely and
tired of life. There was no one with whom I could share my deepest fears and
thoughts. Luckily, I was saved and from then on I promised myself that no
matter what the situation, I shall never quit. I started reading self-help
books and listening to motivational speakers.  
I remember a particular day, when I had
visited my friends place and a random conversation with her mom changed
everything. We were discussing about the same phrase, “Glass being half-empty or half-full” and her views astonished me. This is what she said, “Jaya,
as long as you have a glass and there is something in it, it doesn’t matter,
whether it is half-empty or half full.”
 
 

Though
I failed to understand the depth of those words at the age of 20, I knew there
was something in it for me. I wrote those words in my diary and completely
forgot about it. Few years later, during my maternity leave, I opened the same
diary to pen down my feelings as a new mom.
That’s when these words made sense. Yes I had faced many challenges in my life,
but then who doesn’t? If we all start perceiving these struggles as roadblocks,
then our glass would be half-empty. But on the other hand, if we learn from
each and every incident, our glass would be always full with rich experiences,
which we can share with people around. By doing so, we would help the mankind
to live an enriching life, easily.

Having
said this, being an optimist is not
that easy, but then we have an option of being an opportunist. Become someone, who would make the most of everything
that life gives us. Today, when I look back at the past, I am grateful for all
that happened to me, for it were those events that shaped my life for the
better or maybe for the best.

Now
I want you readers to do a small exercise.
  • Pick up an incident from the past, something that troubles you, something which you wished never happened or something which hurts/ bothers you.
  • Now write down (yes write it down) all the possible lessons this particular event taught you.
  • Once you have done this, I want you to go through each and every point that you have noted and as you do that, you may notice that your feelings towards the event has changed, now.

This
exercise has helped me let go of many hurts and maybe it could help you too, so
do try and share your experience with me, here or email me at, gs.aptekar84@gmail.com

So
how do you view the glass, half-empty
or half-full?

ETA: This post is now a Tangy Tuesday Post. Thank you team Blogadda for this 🙂

 

 

PS: This post is written as
a Guest Author for the Project 365program at We Post Daily aimed at posting at least once a day, based on the
prompts provided. The prompt for today was ‘The glass- Is the glass half-full,
or half-empty?’

9 thoughts on “Your Perceptions

  1. I agree 100% with, “It doesn't matter if the glass is half-empty or half full. Be thankful that you have a glass and grateful that there's something in it."

    Apart from occasional spells of pessimism, I've generally been an optimist. I always remember a saying that I read as a teenager: "I cried because I had no shoes. Then I met a man who had no feet."

  2. As long as one has a glass and something to put in it , that's a blessing. Gayatri , I feel that even though a person might say that the glass is half empty there's nothing wrong as it is the person's perspective of life. Maybe he feels the glass is half empty and wishes to fill it to the brim.

  3. Great, thought-provoking post Gayatri. As Jas rightly said, it takes a lot of positive thoughts to see the glass has always having something. As for me, If my glass is empty, I just refill 😛

  4. "…as long as you have a glass and there is something in it, it doesn’t matter, whether it is half-empty or half full."

    Absolutely true. And I'm so glad that you wrote this inspiring post. I'm also glad that I was not the only one who tried committing that sin called 'suicide'. I'm thankful that I wasn't successful else I would have missed these memorable moments that life has offered now. Good to know more of you as a person through your words. I wish to meet you in person. Someday for sure. 🙂

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