I have some serious story-catching-up to do here, but for now I want to get what’s in my head this morning out into the universe…

Last weekend was the Walla Walla Little League District 5 All Stars tournament. Anson played 10U All Stars last year, and they lost both their games in heartbreaking fashion. This year, Anson was on the 11U team and sadly, they lost both their games this year, too.

This was not the experience we had hoped to have.

I was disappointed and looking for all the ways that the All Stars experience hadn’t lived up to my expectations. I realize how ridiculous this is… the All Stars experience is about Anson, not me. About his expectations and performance and what he gets out of it… not really what I get out of it. But I’m along for the ride and this is my blog so I’m focused on me for a hot second.

When I sat down to do some thought work on this, I realized that by allowing myself to think ‘This wasn’t the experience I wanted to have’ I was missing out on all the goodness that WAS in this experience for me.

What was meant for me in this experience?

Memories with my kiddos. Unplugging for a few days from work and ‘life per usual’ to play and get dirty and cheer and encourage my kid and make new friends. Learning how to process disappointment. Maybe even sharing this with you.

By becoming the person who always finds what is meant for them in any experience, good or bad, I can bounce back from disappointments faster, too. It doesn’t mean that I don’t FEEL disappointment, because that’s part of the human experience. But I can also see how much beauty was in this experience for me and for my family faster by deciding on purpose to find what is meant for me.

What is meant for you in YOUR experiences, good or bad? Is there an experience you could reframe with this simple question?