Five Quotes That Have Altered My Way of Thinking

I love reading and enjoy learning from other people's experiences.  Quotes are a fantastic way to speak into various aspects of my life.  I don't have many memorized but there are some specific ones that have changed my perspective and opened my eyes.

From parenting to marriage to self-worth, there are so many lessons to be learned as we grow and our situations change.  Here are five quotes that have altered my way of thinking:

1. "...All I know is that my life is better when I assume that people are doing their best. It keeps me out of judgement and lets me focus on what is, and not on what should or could be."  This is from Brenè Brown's book Rising Strong. I wrote "We're All Doing the Best We Can" in response to it after making a realization about our foster child's birth mom. Brene Brown has so many other brilliant quotes, I highly recommend checking her out.  Here's another one: Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.

2.  "Children are not a distraction for more important work. They are the most important work" – C.S. Lewis.  I feel that in life there are so many things that fight for our attention–whether it's work or social media, it's easy to get caught up. Parenting is hard and every stage has different struggles, and yet, this is what I want my focus to be right now. One important parenting lesson I have learned this year is that  I have expectations for my kids and sometimes they're not met; I need to remember to readjust if frustration levels increase.

3. "Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better" –Albert Einstein. I need nature.  I'm currently raising my kids in a population dense neighbourhood and it makes me feel...trapped sometimes.  I know I need nature for my mental health and also that of my kids.   Freedom to play, discover, and just be.  The older they get, with more stresses in their life, the more important I see that it is for all of us.

4. "Comparison is the thief of joy" –Theodore Roosevelt.  Social media has given us many more opportunities to compare ourselves with others through skills, abilities and opportunities.  I have to continually remind myself to push my jealousy aside and celebrate with others; it's a decision.

5.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding – Proverbs 3:5.  This changed my life back in about 2002 when I was trying to figure out why my mom had cancer and what the purpose of it all was.  Guess what?  There isn't an answer.  I wrote about it in Learning to Trust.

Those are some of mine–do you have specific quotes that you use for self-talk, raising your children, or to display around your home?

Love,
Louise