Preception is reality....or is it?

One of the commonly used phrase in raising my kids is "perception is reality!"  That phrase goes for them as well as for me!  I always have to remember that "truth" wherever I go to keep myself in line with what someone else might be thinking.  Recently, we have had some issues at school with one of my kids not being liked by a bunch of their classmates.  What is a "bunch" you ask? Oh 4 or so. There are only about 12 in the classroom (which I really do like.) Obviously, there is a perception problem with the kids in that they are placing judgment on my child before they even know much about her.  They are forming incorrect perceptions about her before they even get the chance to know her, really.  The good thing about this school though, is that we have a Principal who like a Guardian Angel who truly has her finger on the pulse of the school and is innovative enough to find a solution to the "problem" and who cares enough to do something about it.  We are truly blessed.

"Perception is reality" also works in our own heads, I find.  Recently, I was parked in a parking space that acted like a little "nest" (the asphalt was buckled) and you had to give it some gas to get out of the spot.  When I got back into the car, I. of course forgot that I had parked in my little hole and was a little panicked when I felt as if I was "stuck" and could not move the car.  What was wrong?  Why wasn't I moving? Was something wrong with the car? A little panic starts creeping in.....was I truly stuck?!?! No.....I was just in a rut and had to push through....ok....give it some gas....wait...still stuck!!  What the....!!!  What was wrong now? A quick look around...the parking brake.  Quick move of the hand, problem solved! A little pressure on the gas pedal and off we go!  Sometimes life is like that.  We feel stuck, in a rut....we are not moving....what the heck are we supposed to do?!?!?  PANIC!!!!!!  SCREAM!!!! YELL!?!?!?! Did that help us at all?  Not one bit.  It kept us in our rut and emotionally dug us in deeper.  This is a lesson I need to keep re-teaching myself....  "perception" is usually NOT reality.....and it usually is a LIE!  Life is not always what it seems and if we just push through, give a little gas, keep our cool, soon we will be moving forward in the direction we want to be.

Loudly yours,

Alicia