Good News and Bad News

A few days ago a woman in Los Angeles gave birth to eight babies. They were born nine weeks early but everything went without a hitch. The pictures on TV and in the newspaper feature an ecstatic team of doctors, beaming of joy that the birth went so well. The team had expected seven but oops, an eight one snuck in. What a great chuckle for the reader. I guess eight is as good as seven, maybe even better. Overall this is great message of joy and a miracle. The babies are doing well, almost all breathe on their own. The mom is happy and beginning to breastfeed. On top of it this is a positive story about an HMO, something we all would like to hear for once.

Then today the message shifts. On CNN and other media outlets we suddenly read reports of why a pregnancy with that many babies is unnecessarily dangerous. How one fertility doctor believes that the couple chooses simple fertility injections (as they are cheaper) versus an in vitro (which is more expensive). It sounds as he implies that the couple made some bad decisions. Some other doctor thinks there should have been a reduction of fetuses to reduce the risk for the mother and the stronger babies. Yet another story said that problems of premature babies would not surface until later. When you are done reading a great feel good moment turns into thoughts of doubt and judgment.

My blood began to boil. What in the world is wrong with this picture?

The world is in the midst of trying times and a lot of what goes on around you is very tough stuff. It is hard to feel good when there is so much despair around you. Most of my readers are familiar with spiritual concepts and most likely you avoid as much as you can the overload of negativity around you.

Having eight seemingly healthy babies is fabulous. It is impossible to not be in awe of this family who clearly wanted to conceive and accepted all that came with it. And they made it! This should be celebrated just as we celebrated the miracle of the Hudson. It is not true that only bad news sell. Remember when "Sully" landed his plane in the Hudson just a few weeks ago. We absorbed the good news and rehashed them over and over again. Why? We need stories of hope so we can hold onto our faith and believes that we will get through this time of turmoil and that everything will turn out OK. It is imperative that we find things that go right and know a person by name that has done something good.

For the woman and the man who wants it all this is a call to action. We can and will stay positive and focused on the good stuff. How can you contribute? When you hear a story that makes you feel good or gives you hope - tell your friends. Twitter links to articles that give you that warm fussy feeling or post them on your Facebook account. Call your friends. Resist the temptation to start your conversation with how many people have lost their jobs and homes and instead be a messenger of good news. Little by little we can shift our consciousness beginning with our immediate surroundings. And that sounds already pretty good to me.

I send you my very best wishes and hope this finds you exceptionally well.
Beate


I invite you to post your good news on this blog, my Facebook or tweet me.