A consistent description of me is bubbly or positive. And people who really know me know I'll vocalize frustrations, my opinions, and never hesitate to giggle at a girl who can't walk in her heels or can't dress herself. But if you're a part of my circle, you know I may ask questions and give honest answers, but you always have my love and support even if you disagree with my opinion.
Lately, I've notices a lot of negative connotation with the word "positive". Apparently, it's completely horribly annoying to be around positive people. And, let's be honest about this: negative mindsets breed negative mindsets.
Let me back up a little. Last night a good friend of mine and I went to a book signing for Paleo authors Juli Bauer, Cassy Joy Garcia, and Diane Sanfilippo. And it was refreshing. Yes, it was a lot about diet, and changes I'm considering making, but more than that, it was a lifestyle conversation. And the one thing that flowed through the room was positivity. I was sitting next to a friend who I consider a big part of my support system, and a really good, positive friend, but I was really reminded of how draining negativity can be. Diane Sanfilippo said something that really resonated with me. She was talking about that she is going to be your honest friend and be real, and she believes that her life should be a positive one.
This really got me wondering, when did being positive become a bad thing? When did choosing to believe that you can do things, that supporting the people in your life, or just thinking that today is going to be a good day become a negative personality trait? I hear negativity all the time: "nothing good ever happens to me", everyone is out to get me" seem to be the every day attitudes I hear. Each of these attitudes is an "I" statement, which makes me want to ask, "if these things are happening to you, what are you going to do to change it?"
I'm not speaking to any one person specifically, but I think it's so strange that feedback I often get is that I'm too happy, too positive, and too bubbly. I'm happy in my life, and if I'm not, I figure out what is causing the unhappiness and change it. I have control over my life, and I don't want to live a life where I'm unsatisfied more than 50% of the time. Honestly, I don't want to live a life where I'm unsatisfied more than 15% of the time.
Two of my favorite people I've ever known once told me a story where someone accused them of being "too happy." When we talked about this conversation afterward, it was very eye-opening that some people don't want to be happy. And that's fine, that's a life choice. I just don't understand trying to drag people down when they are choosing to be happy. Because ultimately, happiness is a life choice too. I just don't think I'll ever understand putting happiness into a negative context.
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