(I originally wrote this entry back in early July but didn't post it at the time. The last few days have been a bit difficult, so I posted this as a reminder to myself that perspective is crucial during a difficult time.)

Last week, a miracle happened at our house. Not a miracle of Biblical proportions, but a miracle on the Miinch-household level. Between selling some unwanted household items on ebay and recycling scrap metal my husband had put aside for that purpose, we ended up with several hundred dollars "extra" at the end of June. We didn't celebrate or make a huge fuss about it, though. The fact is, we were almost afraid to say anything out loud, for fear of jinxing our good fortune.

We might as well have shouted the news from the rooftop of our modest home, for all the good our low-key reaction did us. Yesterday we got an unexpected bill that -- you guessed it -- almost completely wipes out last week's windfall. I'm ashamed to admit my initial reaction. As soon as I opened the bill, my first thought was, "I should have known it. This always happens! Just when we get ahead a little and have a bit of extra money, something happens and it's gone."

Almost instantaneously, though, I realized I had been looking at the situation all wrong. Without any conscious effort on my own part, the thought popped into my head that we were truly blessed to have been given the money in advance of the need!

The thought was so shocking to me, so contrary to my normal thought process, that I literally stopped in my tracks. I called my husband at work and told him the "good news", and throughout the day I found myself marveling at the difference a seemingly-small change in perspective makes.

Oh, I know. Someone will say I'm being a "Pollyanna" (if you don't know what that means, ask your mom or watch the Disney movie), and until last week I probably would have scoffed right along with you. I've always prided myself on being a realistic optimist, with emphasis on the realistic part. But I'm hanging on to this new perspective. Maybe more than one miracle happened at our house last week!