Be Happy

“Rejoice when others rejoice, weep when others weep,” Romans 12:15.

How do you rejoice with others if you’re still waiting on your “reason” for rejoicing?

Have you ever found yourself surrounded by people who seem to all be receiving the answers to their prayers or being granted whatever they’ve been waiting on or hoping for? Meanwhile, YOU are still waiting on YOUR good thing.

How do you respond to this with happiness? Especially when you’re like “HEY, can I get a breakthrough?”

Well, this past weekend I had the pleasure of rejoicing with so many people for many different reasons and I must confess, being a part of so many celebrations did something MARVELOUS for my soul!

Here are a few things I celebrated just this past weekend:

One of my sorority sisters was featured in an article and named as an extraordinary minority in Texas law.

My cousin debuted with her school’s dance team and was ah-mazing!

One of my “Tribe” sisterfriends was in a top grossing movie that opened nationwide.

My Granny, who is bravely battling Alzheimer’s, turned 80 years-old and we celebrated her with a surprise party.

A dear sisterfriend got engaged.

A Tribe sisterfriend and her husband were celebrated for their recent adoption of a son.

And a “sistercousin” left a job that was sucking the life and joy out of her and started a new role crafted just for her.

It was a FANTASTIC weekend of laughing, eating, laughing, giving,  laughing, crying, laughing, sharing and most of all, LOVE! Did I mention how much we LAUGHED?

Each night, as I wrote in my journal, I reflected on the subtle details of my loved ones’ journeys that stood out for me.

I remember hearing about the hard work of law school.

I remember hearing about wanting to quit dance.

I remember hearing the sacrifice of relocating the family or learning script lines.

I remember family meetings and preparing for the changes that come with the disease.

I remember hearing the hope for a marriage proposal.

I remember hearing about the hope and prayer of parenthood.

I remember the anticipation of escaping a dead end job.

I vividly remembered the trials and triumphs that lead to these accomplishments  and I was overwhelmed with joy.

I realized I am also extremely blessed. See, most times when I leave my family or friends, I am actually a better person. I am better because celebrating the accomplishments of others gives me hope for my own dreams. No, I have no desire to be on a dance team or on a movie poster, but the dreams that I do have seem to come alive more when I celebrate the success of others.

I feel hopeful when I share what’s brewing inside of me. Yes, this exposes my vulnerability.  However, I’m starting to see that being vulnerable to those closest to me is the life I want to lead. Don’t you agree?

After spending time with the people I trust, I’m inspired to share the dreams I have with them.  I know that if they do come true, my people will know WHY we must celebrate. If they are not actualized, those same people will be there to comfort me and encourage me to keep dreaming, keep going.

I realized this weekend that life is not just about the end result – the good news – but it’s about recognizing the joy on the pathway of life. One of my “Tribe” sisterfriends put it this way, “Celebrate each stone on the path.” Each stone is significant…each stone.

So today, I encourage you to continue to hope and dream and celebrate one another. I am thankful for the reasons to celebrate others and I’m super excited for what’s to come. Not only for myself but, for you too.

Rejoice when others rejoice…I promise you, it will do something MARVELOUS for your soul.

Striving to be better,

Shanterra

Thoughts:

What do you do you when someone shares their good news with you?

What does it mean to dream out loud?

Feel free to comment below or shoot me an email at Shanterra I’d love to hear from you!