Thursday, December 01, 2011

I had a simple and great day planned today.  It was going to be the day that I stayed local and did all those annoying things on my to-do list that give me the greatest feeling of accomplishment when they're crossed off.  But something came up...

As I usually do on Thursday mornings, I ran out to my 10 am yoga class. For those of you who take yoga, you know that it's not only about exercise but about the balancing of mind, body and spirit. The toning benefits are great but besides for that, taking yoga for years has given me many life tools regarding balance in my life (physically, emotionally and spiritually) and moving outside my comfort zone to attain results. For some reason today...towards the end of the class, I felt extremely emotional and sad and tears starting flowing out of my eyes. (This happens sometimes because of the tension releasing effects of yoga on your body.)

During my drive home I was struggling to understand why, if I'm so truly blessed with everything in my life, I still struggle with moments of sadness and yearnings for things I can't have. I kept saying to myself...you have exactly what you need, and not only that, what you have is flipping amazing.  Hello emotions; get with the program of your fabulous reality!

And then I walked into my house. The first thing I noticed was that my front door was wide open. I explicitly remembered locking it before I left. Then I walked into my bedroom, and that's when I saw it. The drawers, clothing, jewelry, STUFF...was all over the place. I had been on the phone with my friend and I started freaking out. She simply said to me, "You were robbed, I'm calling your husband."

Well considering that my husband is the Deputy Mayor, I had the cops at my house in no time, and we determined that the burglar broke in through my upstairs bathroom window and only took three pieces of diamond and gold jewelry. And I realized everything about my day had changed.

This was a very bad thing, right? All my plans for a day of accomplishing were smashed, my real jewelry was gone and my room was a mess. But surprisingly, these were the thoughts in my head:

1. I am so blessed that the burglar didn't break in while I or my children were home!
2. I am so blessed that he didn't touch my laptop (!!) or my silver.
3. I am so blessed that he didn't find my cash!
4. I am so blessed that no one got hurt.

A bad thing had happened but my reality became one of being blessed.

Just a few minutes before, everything was just rosy, and yet, I had been...well, not so rosy.

Here's another reason I'm blessed: Every morning I have breakfast with my husband and we read out of a book called The Garden of Gratitude. Every single day we read about how all the bad things that happen to us are really good! And if we would only say thank you for the seemingly bad we would bring blessings into our lives. And here I had been crying over nothing...and then I got something to cry about...which was ultimately the wake up call that put my meaningless moaning to rest!

You know, it's really the default mode for humans to focus on what they don't have in their lives. Potentially, we could all be miserable victims no matter what our circumstances are. The work that we have to do is simply this: Be grateful for what we DO have. And remember, what you think you want, but don't have, is not meant to be yours.

And besides...I like costume jewelry better anyway ;)


Next up: THE MOST BEAUTIFUL TIME OF THE YEAR...Glamorous NYC Holiday windows!!!

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  1. I am so sorry to hear about the break-in. I think it's inspiring how you've turned this experience into a positive one that remindrf you to be thankful for your blessings. Kudos.

  2. What a morning!
    Although no one can make light of your burglary, another point to add to your list to be grateful for might be -
    5. You discovered the break in during daylight hours.
    (These things are much scarier at night, and police response is far slower.)
    And I just thought of another one -
    6. The perpetrator was not there when you returned.
    Having been through some really awful situations, I truly feel for you - maybe an extra yoga class?

  3. im so sorry this happened to you, but I'm glad your staying positive

  4. I am so glad to hear nobody in your family was home at the time. I know it’s a frightening thing to have happened but something good always comes out of a bad situation. I love how positive you always are about things. As for the yoga I just recently took it up, it’s harder then it looks!

    Be well!

  5. great blog my dear! http://allegrabj.blogspot.com/

  6. Sorry to hear :(.....Although I Luved the blog. ;)!

  7. OMG, so sorry to hear about that! You're like me though, always able to see the good in almost any situation. Like you said, it could have been so much worse!

  8. Isn't it awful when someone invades your home like this, you just feel so vulnerable. Clean up the mess, install a HUGE burglar alarm system so you can sleep at night, and thank the Lord for his blessings.

  9. Oh my God!!! You must have been scared!!! But it is amazing how you decided to see the situation and turn it into something positive. You're a strong woman and congrats to using that strength in a moment of crisis.

  10. Lots of helpful information. I have bookmarked your site.

  11. Sorry about the break in, but I'm glad no one was hurt, that is most important. Sometimes things happen that make us more aware and appreciate the better things in life! I'm just happy all of you are ok & no one was hurt!! Hope you have a great weekend!! And I agree...costume jewellery is better anyways ;) xx

  12. Sharon, I am soooo sorry to hear that this happend,how frightening. I hope that everything will go smoothly in the days ahead as far as insurance (what a pain) and hopefully in being able to recover your jewelry,etc....this is really scary.
    I absolutely loved your message though! I am so impressed with how you chose to turn this nightmare into a vehicle that allowed to see the blessings in your life. And indeed you do sound very blessed.
    Kudos to see for seeing the silver lining and God does work in mysterious ways, doesn't he?
    I too have had some really off days lately, yesterday being one so when you were describing your emotions I could sooo relate. Thank you for opening up and for your honesty.
    I just added you to my blogroll to be sure I don't miss a post.
    Keep up that wonderful spirit!

  13. Oh Sharon that's so terrible! I am so sorry you had to go through that. But you really took the best out of it for yourself and inspired so many others as well. In this way you made the best of a horrible situation and really did turn something bad into something good!

  14. Wow crazy! Very unnerving but love the inspiration you took from it. Only good news always.

  15. Wow, not what I was expecting to read. How horrible - You are an amazingly strong and positive person and your family is lucky to have you. Please stay safe.

  16. You are brave and full of wisdom...
    I am very happy to hear that no one was hurt. Sonia xo

  17. I'm so sorry about the robbery. It sounds like you handled it really well.

  18. WOW!You have an amazing attitude...You turn something bad that happened into a beautiful post...I am sorry to hear about your loss...May they find everything/everyone speedily.

  19. Sharon, thank God that you and your family are OK/unharmed. You have the right attitude to get over this very violating incident. Hope you are coping OK.