Smiling

So, right outside my office, there is a huge tray of cookies, oreo balls, buckeyes (peanut butter and chocolate are my personal favorite), and all sorts of other goodies. I have resolved to have no desserts in 2012, and wow, is this a test of my willpower! The cookies are there as birthday treats for a co-worker, and I brought in some apple bread that maybe is a fringe dessert, but I'm focusing on the bread part and had a piece. I've decided that when I get a craving for chocolate, I can have a granola bar that has chocolate in it. I just am not going to go with the decadent, super-sugary desserts. The apple bread is about the same as a muffin, right? And a muffin is a breakfast food, not dessert, right?

Right?

I know the key is moderation, and I figure if I can resist desserts for a year, then I will approach them with more moderation in the future. I'll realize I can do without them just fine, and I certainly won't eat them spur-of-the-moment. It's only January 6, and I'm already oogling those buckeyes, but you know what, this doesn't mean I'll never have food like this. And, if I can get my body to a healthier weight, I'll be around a lot longer to enjoy little nibbles here and there.

But for now, I have indulged too much in the past, and it's time to do something about it!

So I'm sitting here over my lunch hour, writing this blog and eating a Lean Cuisine and being good...and I've gotten in my two flights of stairs that is my second New Year's resolution, too.

And now, for my reflections on peace. Today, I found a quotation from Mother Teresa:
Peace begins with a smile.

What a wonderful quote to remember. I've always been a "look on the bright side," "glass is half-full, not half-empty" kind of girl. Smiling comes very naturally and easy for me, and I've noticed what a difference it can make to smile at a stranger--the waitress at a restaurant, the cashier at the store, the person walking in the opposite direction on the street. And I just naturally smile when I'm around family, friends, co-workers, etc. I do believe in approaching problems with kindness rather than blaming people or situations, to just in general give people the benefit of the doubt. Those really are ways to smile, to keep a situation peaceful rather than to escalate a situation into something ugly.

So this made me think about how I can smile at God. I think the best way to do that is to always remember to praise Him. It's easy to remember to do that when He has answered our prayers--our friend is released from the hospital, a healthy baby is born, etc. But what about when we're going through difficult times? Or what about remembering to praise God for the everyday things--a warm home, the sunshine, a sleeping baby in a stroller at the mall.

It's when we smile at all of God's blessings that we find peace. When we focus on His goodness, His generosity, His incredible love, we can't help but feel peace in our souls. And when we find God's peace, suddenly those buckeyes outside my office aren't nearly as tempting. I'm doing what God wants me to do.

And I'd like to think He's smiling right now.