Half Full Or Half Empty

Is the glass half full?

Or is it half empty?

I don't recall when I first heard this or when it was explained to me that optimists are positive, while pessimists are negative.  Optimists are praised as positive thinkers who see the best in situations while pessimists are regarded those who see the worst in a situation-the doom and gloom person.  It isn't as if the optimist is right and the pessimist is wrong.  Both are equally correct.  What I'm proposing is that we do away with the positive/negative connotations regarding individuals and their respective perceptions.  Let's embrace both views as perfectly accurate descriptions expressed on the basis of how God has hard-wired each of us.

Negative isn't always such a bad thing.  The person who gets a negative report from his cancer biopsy is thrilled and happy.    A positive report would be bad.  It isn't as if the pessimist is wrong to say the glass is half empty and the optimists view is right. I'm not sure why so many people insist we all have a positive attitude towards everything.

The person who is hard-wired by God with the gift of encouragement, looks at the glass and sees it is half full.  She merrily goes about enjoying her half full glass.  The what-some-people-refer-to-as pessimistic person looks at his half empty glass realistically.  Realizing it is half gone, rather than go about enjoying the last of his milk, goes to check in the refrigerator to make sure there is more.  Seeing there isn't, he sets the last half of his glass in the refrigerator and runs to the grocery store for more milk.  Blissfully ignorant, the optimist finishes her glass and knows everything will work out for good, as it always does.

I have more to say on the subject, but am woefully out of time.  Today, as I look at this glass, I compare it to my life.  In just 50 days, I will be celebrating my half-century birthday.  Since I plan on living to be 100,  my life is half over, or half begun.  I'll take both.