Making Lemonade

by Doreen Washington

Lemonade is one of my favorite cold drinks. Just the perfect type of sweetness and chill will quench my thirst and have me wanting more. I do not know of anyone who loves their lemonade bitter - do you?

Sometimes the circumstances that come through our lives can leave us with a taste of bitterness, but just as with lemons, it will remain bitter until we decide to make lemonade. Lemons sometimes describe how we view our walks through life - just a bit bitter and not very pleasant once we begin to taste its juices. How do you view your circumstances? Will you consider your turbulences to be the taste of a bitter lemon or will you view each circumstance as an opportunity to squeeze a lemon and make a cold glass of sweet lemonade.

We are all faced with challenging circumstances, but how will we view the worst of them that come through our lives? We can begin to train ourselves to view our circumstances positively regardless of the outcome and the effects that it may bring. The more that we are squeezed the sweeter we get. Are we able to have lemonade in the worst of our situations?

Regardless of what comes our way, life can be good, sweet and easier to swallow. We all know that things are difficult today, but we can choose to make our worlds - our lives - sweet, just as a cold glass of lemonade; enjoying it as it refreshes us. We have to develop ourselves and begin to pay attention to how we view our mishaps and downfalls. We can, on purpose, see every circumstance as good or bad, as an opportunity to demonstrate love, joy, peace, gentleness and goodness. It will keep you free and keep you healthy!

Do we want our joy to remain, our past hurts to pass and to continue to control our circumstances and our destiny? Then start today - make your lemons into lemonade. We are woman!

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Wednesday's "We Are Woman" column is created by Doreen Washington. Doreen resides in Newport News, VA.  She is the author of her newest book, We Are Woman, an inspiring book that speaks to women about their strength, value and victories. Her next book, Trapped - Learning to live free while waiting for romance and marriage, will hit book stores in early 2010.

Doreen is also the Founder and Executive Director of The FACE Foundation, a non-profit charitable organization that focuses its resources on assisting single working mothers.  While writing is a passion of hers, she also finds time to devote the her local chapter as the president of the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW). You can visit Doreen's blog at www.doreenwashington.blogspot.com.