It seems like it would be so easy, and yet it’s something that proves so hard.

It’s way too easy to focus on the negative rather than all that is going well and all of the good around us.

My son’s team lost their little league baseball game this week.

It was the playoffs; they were one win away from going to the championship game.

After the loss, at first, I was upset. I was frustrated with several calls by the umpires and how poorly the manager of the other team spoke to us. Just a very poor showing of sportsmanship.

(What the heck are they teaching these young men? But that is a story for another time.)

But then, this morning, I woke up and thought about how far some of these boys came this season. Some of them had never even played baseball before. And almost all of them had never played in such a high-pressure situation, a must-win game.

I reflected on watching my own son deal with adversity and move on. His emotions (and mine!) through the ups and downs, but how he mustered strength and overcame. I thought about his desire to win. He learned to focus on the next play, the next out, the next at-bat.

Suddenly, I was calm, accepting. I felt pacified and proud by what we taught these young men, where we came from and where we ended up. In these few short months, I was appreciated how much we had taught them, what kind of positive impact we made, the big picture.

In a world with so much noise around us, it is so easy to listen to what appears to be the loudest yell. Sadly, that’s usually negative.

But with kids, they are just in the moment. They only hear what they need or want at that time at the time (good or bad).

We, as adults, could learn something from that.

That afternoon after the loss, as we left the field to head home, I was upset about all that could have been.

But when I woke the next day, I was excited for what was and what we accomplished, even grateful it all unfolded as it did. There were greater lessons to be learned, loftier victories for my son.

So, I am making a commitment to remind myself to focus on the accomplishments of the day, the good stuff. Listen to the reasonable and excited voice inside you, the one cheering you on, the one that is an eternal optimist.

After all, that is the only one that counts.

-J.D.