Yes, we are living in a challenging time.  Like anything (probably everything) else, it has two sides.  There is the side that looks negative, feels negative, and is negative in some ways.  It also has a positive side.

I've noticed over my lifetime that those who have struggled to get where they are have a certain edge over those who have not.   College students who were working their way through school had a real appreciation for learning.  Children raised with the certainty of having chores that were entirely their responsibility did them as a matter of course and learned responsibility.  Those with handicaps who simply tried harder and never complained set examples of how we should live.

We've been on a long joy ride and who wants to get off?  But life's lessons are often learned through managing with less or giving more to others.  There is joy in reality as well as in fantasy.

When we break a leg or are confined to bed with the flu, we appreciate good health so much more.  Writing a check to the Free Clinic is more poignant when we consider the cost of insurance and the cost of not being able to afford insurance.  Contemplating an illness costing someone a job may make us more grateful for the ability to write that check.

Whatever we do well,
we can do better. 
These are times
that require extra effort.

Any situation that brings out the best in us definitely has a positive side.  When we do count our blessings, we often realize we can also use them more than we do.  Whatever our talents, our skills, our knowledge that we bring to life and to making a living, we may be able to sharpen.   Whatever we do well, we can do better.  These are times that require extra effort.

Small business owners and their employees have always been more aware of the importance of going that extra mile to give good service to customers.  Those who 'kill what they eat' every day are always tuned in.  Isn't that what made this country great?  Paying attention, trying a little harder, being grateful?

We can all pay attention to what is important in life.  At home and in business we can all do just a little better.  We've pulled wagons up the hill before and we can do it again.  After all, we were happy to ride down the hill in the wagon.  Aren't we fortunate to be able to pull it back up!  It's a joint effort.

Jean Loxley-Barnard has been a writer all her life and studied both sociology and psychology at George Washington University where she earned a B.A. Her company, The Shopper, Inc., encompasses all the Loxley-Barnard family publications - The Shopper Magazines and Doctor to Doctor Magazine. She has been in the advertising, consulting and publishing business for 39 years.