are you an "and" or a "but" person?

​Yesterday morning, while I was out running, I shared a picture of a beautiful sunrise. Shortly after, my friend Beth Royal sent me a message. It said:

"I am headed out for tea with the dogs...it is absolutely glorious out there...def a morning to be outside. Well...any morning. Any day, all day...sigh...such blessings...have a simply fabulous day...that light is just awesome, and those mare's tails clouds, and the birds and blossoms and frost and trees and, and, and!"

As I ran on after reading that message, I smiled. Mainly because THAT message IS my friend Beth. It is who she is and how she lives her life.

I reflected on that for a bit. I reflected on how is it that she can be that person day after day? I decided the answser to that was in the last three words of her message: "and, and, and!"

My friend Beth, she is an "and" person. She adventures through life hunting for the next "and" - because when she wakes up in the morning, she absolutely believes in her soul - there is an "and" out there to be found in this day.

Her belief in the "and" fuels within her uncanny hope and optimism - the kind that adds a little pep to my running step when her "and" message pops up during a morning run.

And I dare say it's the "and" in her that helps me and others steer clear of the "buts" in our lives.

Because I do think the opposite of an "and" person is a "but" person. I think the "but" person can see all the "ands" in the world that Beth sees, but when they see them, something in them says;

but not me.....

Something inside them says I see that opportunity to cling to life and to beauty, "but" - there's something about me that makes it impossible to have.

I'm not good enough.

I'm not strong enough.

I'm not smart enough.

The world would never share its "ands" with someone like me.

It's Monday. It's a new week. And we all get to choose.

We get to choose "and" or "but".

We can choose to look for and find the light and the clouds and the birds and the blossoms.

Or we can say, I'd like to, but.......

Well, you are worth every "and" in this life. AND, I fully believe you can go after them this week. If you're hearing that and thinking, yea, but - well, I encourage you to think "and" instead.

And, and, and.....