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Can You Find Beauty in the Midst of Stressful Situations?

3/12/2019

Granddaughter Willow

Super Bowl Sunday this year turned out very differently than I expected.
Not because of who won the game, but because of a serious accident with my 14-month-old granddaughter.

Here’s what happened.
She and I were in my bathroom getting ready for church. She was playing with the shower curtain and within a split second fell head first into the empty bathtub.

I reached in and scooped her up but something was very wrong.
She was making not a single sound. And her little body was not moving other than her chest doing shallow breathing.

I yelled for my 17-year-old daughter. She took one look at Willow and immediately called 911. She relayed what the 911 operator was telling me to do. Within five minutes the ambulance, a fire truck and two police cars were in front of our home.

They carried Willow out to the ambulance while I got dressed and my daughter called my son and his fiancé to tell them to meet us at HCMC. The paramedic walked with me to the ambulance and told me Willow’s vitals were normal. I could hear her crying at the top of her lungs. The paramedic said her crying was a very good sign.

Willow is fine now. She got amazing care in the pediatric ICU. All her preliminary tests came back normal and they kept her overnight just to make sure everything was OK.

So where does the beauty part come in?

Later that day, Willow’s maternal grandparents came to the hospital. So did her uncle and her mom’s best friend. We took turns entertaining Willow because she was hooked up to monitors that wouldn’t allow her to get out of her hospital crib.

We all spent the afternoon together in support of Willow. What we actually created was a beautiful circle of love. All of our relationships deepened.

We can’t be in control over what happens in life that is stressful for us.

What we can be in control over is what we choose to focus on and see in the stressful situations we find ourselves in. I chose to see the love in that hospital room on Super Bowl Sunday. And the beauty of the circle of people who adore my little granddaughter, Willow.

In every area of our lives, and in every situation in which we find ourselves, we have a choice as to what we choose to see and feel.

It can be something as ordinary as February and March snowfalls. Minneapolis was facing another week of measurable snow coming on top of the 30+ inches already on the ground. We can be stressed about the slippery roads and sidewalks and focus on being upset about it. Or we can make a happier choice and admire the beauty of the blue sky and the winter-wonderland-effect of the big flakes and sparkling crystals of new snow.

Beauty exists in every situation. Most of us are not trained to look for it in the everyday. But I can tell you, that when you do look for it, beauty is there waiting to fill our hearts and offer a softening effect on stressful situations.