's motd Wed Nov 10, 2010

[Guest guest]

THE OPTIMIST

Wednesday, 10 November 2010

was raised by his

grandmother. His mom and dad both worked full-time

jobs when he was young. So 's grandmother

baby-sat with him a lot. And of course, Grandma

prepared his meals each day he spent with her. Oh,

she just loved pleasing with foods from her

kitchen.

"Grandma, will you make me

some of your chocolate chip cookies today?"

"Oh, of course I will , sweetie. You know

Grandma would just love to!"

Well, thanks to Grandma's tasty cookies and a whole

lot of other foods, (like his favorite, Dagwood

sandwiches), became a chubby kid at an early

age. His father became alarmed as he saw how big his

son was getting and tried to do something about it.

So he began taking for long daily walks in the

park near their home. hated those walks. He

hated carrying all of his extra weight for one thing.

When he got home from one of their walks, would

mosey into the kitchen and make himself a peanut

butter and jelly sandwich, using some of

Grandma's delicious homemade bread. Then he'd sneak

to his bedroom and eat the sandwich without anyone

knowing.

As grew older, he tried some

very unhealthy ways to lose weight. He'd lose 30-40

pounds but, every time, ended up putting the weight

he'd lost right back on. This pattern continued into

his 40s until. But his bad eating habits and ever

growing weight lead him somewhere else. To the

hospital emergency room. At less than 50

years-old, had suffered a mild heart attack.

And, needless to say, that heart attack scared him and

I mean really scared him, well, almost to

death!

After he was released from the hospital, made up

his mind that enough was enough! He

acknowledged that he hadn't taken good care of himself

for all of the years leading up to his heart scare.

He realized it was time to fix his health before he

ended up in a hospital bed again...or worse!

Rather than thinking about all of

the times he'd tried to lose weight in the past and

didn't make it, began thinking about what it

would be like if he could stay on program and get down

to a healthy weight.

After finishing his rehab at the hospital, he joined a

gym and began working out four days a week. He

switched from giant bowls of sugary cold cereals in

the mornings and began having healthier breakfasts of

hot oatmeal and a glass of orange juice. He gave up

the fast food sandwiches he'd been addicted to and

stopped eating out as often. simply took

control of his eating habits and dedicated himself to

working out...seven days a week now! And it

should come as no surprise to you, that with his new

healthier lifestyle, lost weight! He's lost 44

pounds so far and has to lose 45 more to reach his

goal. So he's just shy of the halfway mark! Everyday

when he gets out of bed, begins his day by

reminding himself: You're a winner and you're

going to go...all the way!

So yesterday, you met Pam

the Pessimist. And today, you've met

the Optimist. Now I know which one of them you

want to be. And you also know how to get to be

just like ! It's all about

having hope, believing in yourself and, of course, staying

positive. (Hey, that's what being an optimist

is all about.)

Okay, I want you to be the optimist and stay positive

all day today. I want you to think about how good

you'll feel if you walk in 's footsteps. Believe

me, that optimism you have today will spill over into

tomorrow, the next day and, before you know it, your

cup will runneth over...with success!

Love,