Stories of Kindness from Around the World

A Child's Response to Life's Unexpected Gusts


--by Ashly, posted May 18, 2009

Last spring I was walking in a park. A short distance ahead of me was a Mom and her three-year-old daughter. The little girl was holding onto a string that was attached to a helium balloon.

All of a sudden, a sharp gust of wind took the balloon from the little girl. I braced myself for some screaming and crying.

But, no! As the little girl turned to watch her balloon go skyward, she gleefully shouted out, "Wow!"

I didn’t realize it at that moment, but that little girl taught me something.

Later that day, I received a phone call from a person with news of an unexpected problem. I felt like responding with, "Oh no, what should we do?"  But, remembering that little girl, I found myself saying, "Wow, that’s interesting! How can I help you?"

One thing’s for sure - life’s always going to keep us off balance with its unexpected problems. That’s a given. What’s not preordained is our response. We can choose to be frustrated or fascinated. No matter what the situation, a fascinated Wow! will always beat a frustrated Oh, no.

So the next time you experience one of life’s unexpected gusts, remember that little girl and make it a Wow! experience. The Wow! response always works.

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Readers Comments

vsoul wrote: Wow..what a powerful message. Love you for sharing this Ashly.
helpinghand wrote: Beautiful Advice.Thanks for sharing Ashly.
Keep Smiling.
guddee wrote: Last week my friend taught me something similar. If we can't control something, getting angry or frustrated is not going to solve the situation - rather, try to take best out of the situation. :)
JuneBug wrote: Yep, we must learn to conquer our trials with expectations !! :)
Aurelia wrote: Thanks for passing on such a good way to look at life's little bumps in the road. ~Aurelia
unknown wrote: Beautiful baby !
sethi wrote: Great Post. The Intellect overpowers the mind . Thank you .
marvsmile wrote: thanx 4 the story
OperationSmileyF wrote: I love this story so much, as this is something that I am costantly working on. I will remember that little girl the next time something unexpected catches me by suprised. Thank you so much for sharing this story with us. :)
LOAS
mommakat wrote: Thanks so much ashly for showing me a way to look at life's little "uh oh's". I would have reacted negatively instead of with a 'wow'. I guess we could turn all of life's little "uh oh's" into a 'wow' if we learned to keep a positive outlook on life. It usually takes a child to point out to an adult how they should behave. We have so much to learn from children. And we should always be aware of what is going on around us or we miss out on life's simple pleasures.

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