“I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather.” -Goethe
Jenny’s Take: Upon first glance, this might seem like a self absorbed statement. I suppose you could read it this way, if it weren’t for one little word. That word is “frightening”. There is a certain amount of humility when you recognize that things don’t happen TO you, but rather WITH you. You have the power – and it is immense in its nature – to take anything that comes your way and handle it with grace, humor, and dignity.
No matter what happens to you, you always…always have the power to choose your reaction to it. Which means that you have the power to create a beautiful climate in your home or a stormy one. The choice is up to you.
-Jenny Runkel, Director of Content for The ScreamFree Institute
The Confident Mom’s Take: This past week a comment was left on a blog post about stress and our kids. One reader said she was the ‘barometer’ in her home, her mood and stress level determined how the house would run that day. I completely agree and I love the term, ‘barometer’ – you will probably see it more often. I have said for quite some time that our role as mom’s, Keepers of the Home really has tremendous influence in our family. Our mood and how we choose to handle certain situations is extremely contagious. This is a reminder, especially for me as I am running LOW on sleep, up late at night with a fuzzy newborn and realizing that I can’t do it all at the same level that I was before this little person entered our home. I have a choice in how I choose to take care of myself and treat others in my home, whether or not I have had “enough” sleep or not. I have the chance to create a warm and loving environment or a unstable and stressed one. What can you do today to make sure you project the mood you desire your family to imitate?
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for these reflections – I like to remind myself that “my response is my responsibility”…
And what really helps me when I feel myself boiling over is to do something intentionally fun or funny with my kids.
At first I resist it like crazy, who wants to laugh when you are steaming, but if I can just break through for a moment, and say, tickle one of them — it is amazing how the situation (inner and outer) diffuses.
You are more and more like me than I knew! I often use humor to get myself out of those tricky situations where I could easily BLOW! It helps everyone keep things in perspective
I have often used that quote being an educator and it is very, very, very true.
I certainly needed this reminder. That old saying, “If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”, really plays out in our home. I know if I am in a bad mood, it resonates to the kids and then to my husband. I sometimes really have to make that choice to smile and plow through the stress and when I do, we are all better for it. Thanks for the post!
Thanks for comment, we are powerful role models in this area for sure! It is nice to have the reminder.
Wow. I can’t even get over how true that statement is.
I’ve noticed that when I’m in a weird mood, it can either rub off on my husband – if he is not careful. Or he has to adjust his to “support” mode to pull me out of the funk in order to enjoy the day. Because if I’m down, it affects him.
I don’t have children yet, but I can only imagine how my will impact them. This has helped me see that I have more responsibility than I realized. Like someone said, “the man may be the head but the woman is the neck”. I’m going to accept my role and make sure that my home’s environment is stable, loving and conducive to do our God-given work.
I love your quote, “The man may be the head, but the woman is the neck”. WOW! I have never heard that one, but so true!! How awesome that you are knowing what your role will be when you start a family, I wish I had been that tuned in before I started my family!