Well, it’s Monday. The hubby woke up with a swollen eye. I had to get up early for a 7:00 AM meeting. Ate lunch at my desk. Rushed to get done early so I could watch my son “sing” at the Christmas Tree Lighting. Recorded five minutes of him picking his nose. Waited for half an hour so he could meet Santa. Got great pictures of his meltdown.  And then we sat in traffic for over an hour.

When I finally got home I was feeling grouchy and found myself focusing on all the things that weren’t so great about my Monday.  But then I looked at the beautiful Christmas decorations and my beautiful family and realized I was still glad for today. I wasn’t gonna write it off as just another bad Monday, like we all so often do.

Think about it. How many of us woke up this morning dreading the day? Did you shuffle down the hall waiting for Murphy’s Law to start tripping you up? Did you silently (or not so silently) curse Monday when any little thing went wrong?
Monday gets such a bad rep. There are countless memes and cartoons and songs out there espousing our universal hatred of Mondays.

What is the reason? I read an interesting interview with Jim Davis, creator of Garfield, about why the iconic orange cat detests Mondays so much. Davis said:

“Garfield does not have a job, Garfield does not go to school, and every day is the same. Nevertheless every Monday is just a reminder that his life is the same old, same old cycling again and for some reason even though his life is pretty much the same every day on Mondays specifically, awful things tend to happen to him physically.”

We all fall into this “same old, same old” cycle. When another week of the same old thing starts, we blame Monday for our feeling unmotivated, overworked, under-rested, unfulfilled, etc. Sometimes, we even give Wednesdays a little crap …

Yet, at the same time, we count down the days until weekends and holidays and vacations as if they were just miles between us and our destination — forgetting that every day we have on this earth, even Monday, is precious. All we get is today. Tomorrow isn’t promised. The future doesn’t exist. 

So even if today was the cruddiest Monday in the history of Mondays, it was still one more day you got to open your eyes, breath in and breath out, and walk on this earth. It was another day, another chance, to make your life what you want it to be.

I’m not saying we have to start to loving Mondays. Be cranky if you want, especially if you run out of coffee. Yell at traffic if you need. Just be careful about starting a day “knowing” it will be bad …

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — either way you’re right.”   Henry Ford

… or wishing it were Friday already. A lot of life happens on ordinary days. So when the next Monday comes around, try to make it a better one. Wear something new. Pack a treat in your lunch. Sing loudly in the car. Do something kind and pay it forward. Happiness is contagious, and the little things (and little days) can make a big difference. 🙂