Happiness While Demanding Respect

A lot has happened since my last post. I made a commitment to myself to finally be happy and live my life in doing things that I enjoy while surrounding myself with people who matters. In doing this, I needed to simplify my life and create stronger relationships with my friends and family.

As most of you are aware, my husband and I moved back to Michigan over a year ago after our venture in Missouri. (Pfizer offered me a promotion during the Ann Arbor closure and relocated us. While in Missouri, we had several set-backs and eventually my position was again, eliminated.) I consistently stayed positive and just knew everything would eventually all work out. It just had to.

A few months ago, I paid cash for an adorable, small house (what a deal!). Within one week of living in my new abode, I started a new job and became a grandmother to a beautiful granddaughter, Sienna. My home is everything I had hoped for and the security of owning it free and clear is still surreal. I was unexpectedly, offered a job at a reputable large, non-profit organization.

My first grandchild is so wonderful and seeing the positive changes in my son since Sienna's arrival, is a huge bonus. For the first time in my life, I now arrived at the end of the tunnel and see the light!  Life was good... No, it was great! 

While things are going well for the first time in several years, it is expected to have some minor hiccups on the newly, paved path of happiness. The experience from my tortured childhood and other stressful situations, built character and a solid foundation to handle whatever comes into my life. It is up to me to make a decision to be happy. It took all my life to finally experience happiness and there was no way anyone or any situation would take that away from me! Anyone!

As I once read, those who rebuild their lives after a disaster are those who have been given the gift of adversity often fare better than those who have lived lives of comfort and ease. It is not what happens to you, but how you deal with it that determines whether or not you are going to make it through.

Most of my life, I accepted the way people treated me. I was always known as being strong and thick-skinned. After all, I am a survivor of abuse and can handle whatever comes my way. But now that I am older and wiser, I no longer have to accept poor behaviors toward me nor do I have to ignore it in hopes it will get better. 

I am a woman who deserves respect and who should expect it from all, that includes people I work with. As you should, too.

So my dilemma, I need to understand why God put me in, yet again, a bad situation. I wonder what the lesson-learned is and/or the message I need to know before being able to continue my path of the newly found, happiness. After my discussion with this person on respect and plenty of reminders that I am still new, to give me time to learn; she does try not to constantly demean or disrespect me.  Unfortunately, old habits are hard to break. Maybe I am to gain more strength and to stand taller in what I believe in. Whatever it is, I am sure the results will follow in a new post.Stay tuned.