I'm Maggie Smith, and this is The Slowdown.

At times when I've been overwhelmed, I've definitely said it's always something, or some version of that phrase.

It's the kind of thing you say when you're grumpy or burned out or fed up, and then you get yet another piece of bad news. The car won't start,

or the furnace is on the fritz, or your child wakes up with a fever on the day of your big presentation.

It's always something.

And it's true, if you think about it,

there will always be another challenge around the bend.

That's not pessimism, it's just life.

But I have to remind myself that there are always wonderful surprises around the bend to good things, big and small. I have to remind myself to say, it's always something in a different

tone and with a different intention, with gratitude, because life throws us all

kinds of curveballs, and some of them are flat out amazing, some of them are gifts.

Maybe a kind email or text pops up at that exact moment when you could use a lift.

Maybe you're offered an exciting opportunity at work or receive some other kind of professional

recognition, something you didn't even know you were being considered for.

Maybe a new friend or a new love arrives in your life when you least expect it.

Maybe after months or years of feeling stuck in some aspect of your life, you get unstuck.

I don't know what might happen tomorrow or the next day or the

next. I can't know. That can be a source of stress, but it can also be a source of hope and

excitement. The future is full of possibility. Some of life's surprises are heartbreaking,

yes, but some are heart repairing, heart filling, heart strengthening. I try to remind myself of that.

As long as we are alive, our luck can change. It's always something.

Today's poem shows up like good news on a bad day. You desperately need it, but you don't

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