Attitude is the difference

Last Friday Bill and I took our two boys to Annapolis for dinner at a restaurant I'd seen reviewed in The Washingtonian.  Sadly they don't take reservations.  Of course, we had to pick what was probably their busiest night, and we didn't get there early enough to beat the crowd. So there we were with our name on the list and the grim prospect of a 90 minute wait.  It was already 7:30, and we were all hungry and a little cranky.  We considered going someplace else, but the only ones that appealed to me also didn't take reservations, so we proceeded to wait and gripe amongst ourselves.  After about 20 minutes of sitting outside (where they don't serve wine), we decided we should edge our way inside (where they do serve wine) and see if that helped.  Inside, a deep windowsill became our makeshift bar, and pretty soon we were laughing, and sipping a glass of wine (not Colton, of course), and enjoying a brick-oven pizza margherita from the bar menu.  It turned into a really nice time there, and the wait didn't seem so long at all.  When we were seated, Johnny pulled out his phone and showed me a post from one of his many social media feeds.  It said, "Attitude is the difference between an ordeal and an adventure."  So true.

Knitting is one of the things that adjusts my attitude.  Knitting and sometimes a little wine.  You know, stuff happens - unexpected bumps in our lives and in our knitting.  Ripping out a few inches of progress is frustrating, certainly, but knitting is a process I enjoy inherently.  It's just a little more time to enjoy my lovely fibers.  Doctor's way behind schedule?  With my attitude adjusting project, it's found knitting time.  Don't get me wrong, this attitude doesn't come easily or naturally.  It's a practice I have to work on every day, like gratefulness and mindfulness.  It's about controlling what I can control, which is my reaction to a challenging situation.  I know it probably sounds kind of Pollyannaish, but when you consider the alternative, it's the only way to get through the little bumps in life's road.  I hope knitting is part of your mindfulness practice and that it helps your soul.  Let me know.

I look forward to seeing you in the shop and around the table - you are always welcome here.

~Ellen

Back to the 29 August 2017 newsletter.