My middle child, Jake, was smart and good-looking, but he always sees the cup of life as half empty. Every day when he came home from school, Jake would list everything bad that happened that day!
On his ninth birthday, we saved enough money to take the family to Disneyland for two days. His dad and I didn't make much then, so it cost a considerable amount, but we felt Jake's birthday was worth it. After doing Disneyland to death, we returned to our hotel room, all exhausted. And I asked the birthday boy, "Did you have fun today, Jake?"
All my fault-finding son could say to me was "Pirates(海盗) of the Caribbean was closed！"
"Jake Marshall,"I was clearly unable to contain my anger, "we stood in line for an hour and a half to see The Haunted Mansion. We rode Space Mountain three times. We spent two days playing in the park, and all you can say is, Pirates of the Caribbean was closed?" Clearly, something had to be done about his negative attitude and I was going to be the one to do it!
I was determined to help him. I read every article and bought every book. With the help of great resources, I found my son had the tendency to see the worst in every situation. My research told me that people with negativity have an emotional need for order and sensitivity. That meant I needed to listen to my son's daily pessimistic reports. My usual reaction was to try to talk Jake out of his negativity, but that wouldn't satisfy his need for sensitivity, so I had to let him finish his complaints and ask what good things happened. Then I needed to wait until he could tell me. This would help Jake realize that good things really were happening to him.
Para1:
One day Jake came home from school and complained as usual.
Para2:
From then on, Jake came to understand the power of seeing good points.
