What’s in the Bag?

For almost a year the bag in this photo sat in my closet. I hid a gift in it earlier and, after giving the gift, I just kept the bag. Last week I cleaned a few unnecessary things out of my closet and this bag was one of them.

My phone rang while I was cleaning, so I set the bag down and walked away to take care of the call. I never got back to the bag and it sat on the kitchen counter until everyone got home later that afternoon.

Every single person who came into the kitchen wanted to know what was in the bag. Even my brother-in-law, who stopped by to drop off some paperwork, checked inside the bag. Each person who checked on the bag’s contents was visibly sad about it emptiness. I took these observations and thought I would turn them into a lesson on positivity.

Everyone who looked in or asked, “What’s in the bag?” was hoping for something pleasant. They all wanted to find a surprise or a new smelly-good item to use.

This is what we call optimism.

When something out of the ordinary (i.e. the bag) appears, we hope that it will bring joy into our day. I LOVE optimism! I love the notion that something we didn’t expect could bring surprising happiness. This makes getting up in the morning worthwhile.

Each new day is like this bag (sort of). We don’t know what to expect. We do know what we think we will find in the day (or the bag), but we aren’t really sure where the opportunities will come from.

I hope today you find unexpected joy in the things you encounter. Consider putting some energy into adding optimism into someone’s day. While the appearance of a surprising act or display of affection may throw people off, you will add value and happiness in their life.

Put some surprising Intentergy into them and your actions (i.e. the bag) will never be empty.

By: Melanie A. Peters

P.S. I am not a spokesperson for Bath and Body Works. It’s just a bag.