Written by Cynthia McIntosh

Success With McIntosh

We've all had times in our lives that we can look back on and wonder why things happened the way they did.  As I write this blog, many people in Texas are dealing with tragic losses.  Some of them have lost absolutely everything.  Some have even lost loved ones to the storm they named Harvey.  It is said that Harvey was a 1 in a 1000 year flood event.  That's huge, no matter how you look at it!  And with it came devistation.  I honestly can't imagine what the wonderful people of Texas are going through.  I'm sitting in my studio in sunny Southern California complaining about the triple-digit heat!  Not a drop of rain here, and we could use it!  Meanwhile Houston, Texas is under water.  And I think about our neighbors in Houston and what they are going through, and the heat doesn't seem so bad!

I can look back over my life and see a lot of pain, disappointment, and regret.  But I can also honestly say that all of it has worked together to make me who I am today...it has made me strong; it has made me determined; it has made me focused; it has taught me to be very sensitive to the needs and feelings of others; it has taught me compassion.  It has given me an intense desire to help those around me.  It has taught me not only to love those around me, but to be able to accept love from them.  It has taught me humility.  And above all, it has taught me that if I focus on me and my problems, my problems look huge -  but when I focus on the needs of others and how I can help them, my problems tend to really diminish.

I pray for those in Texas who are dealing with such terrible devistation and feel like they have lost everything.  I pray for stength for every one of them.  I pray for courage.  I pray for comfort.  And I pray that God will bring people into their lives to help them and show them love.

God bless each and every one of them in a very special way.

My heart goes out to all of you.

And may we all treat each other with respect, consideration, love, and compassion.  Everyone has "stuff", and we never know what the person we are talking to is going through.  Sometimes something as little as a smile, or a compliment, or a word of encouragement can change a person's whole day, and sometimes even their life!  And the icing on the cake is that if you are thinking about others, it makes your life easier as well, because you aren't so focused on your own problems.  Just sayin'.

So go out there and make a difference in someone's life.  Being a positive influence in the lives of those around you is a big part of living a successful life, no matter what success means to you!

Cynthia McIntosh