Life Be Life-ing, But I'm Still Choosing the Good
Hey, my beautiful readers! Welcome back to My Sassy Stories, where I share my life honestly, what I've experienced, how I felt, and what each season has taught me. Today I want to tell y'all about a day that tried to knock me down and still turned into one of the best days I've had in a while. So, let's get into today's story.
Yesterday, August 16th, reminded me that life can hand you bad news and still turn around and give you something beautiful in that very same day.
I opened the mail that afternoon and got some news I wasn't ready for. I won't get into the details, because that's not what this story is about. What matters is I could have let it wreck my whole day.
But I didn't. And I'm so glad I didn't.
Sometimes You Have to Turn the Day Around
Around five o'clock, me, Avery, and the kids went outside to walk, and somewhere along the way we ended up playing basketball. Me and Avery against Rayshawn and Maria. First team to five wins.
If the kids won, Avery was bringing them a pizza . If we won, they were doing all the chores in the house. Y'all know I was playing to win.
And we won.
I made four of our shots. Avery made one. Let that sink in.
I had no gym shoes, just my flip-flops, and I wasn't walking back inside to change. So I kicked them off and told my kids, "When we step on this court, I am not your mama."
They had the nerve to say I was too old.
Excuse me? At thirty-six years old, I was outside barefoot beating my own children in basketball. Put some respect on my name.
That Basketball Game Took Me Back
Somewhere between the laughing and trash talking, my mind drifted back to being fourteen, standing on the sidelines watching my brother play ball with his friends. I was always there, his little cheerleader. He'd tell me, "Shana, when I get done playing, I'll let you play."
I never got to play. He was always too tired by the time he finished. But I didn't care. I loved being there with him.
Apparently all those years on the sideline taught me something, because yesterday I was out there making shots.
And Then I Hit That Three-Pointer
We were at four points, one away from winning. Avery said I was taking the last shot.
I didn't even think it was going in. I threw the ball up.
Three-pointer. It went in.
Me and Avery screamed so loud the neighbors on the corner stared like we'd lost our minds. My son had been guarding Avery, but once he realized I was scoring, he switched right up on me. Maria was no help to her brother. She gave up around our third point.
It was hilarious, but underneath the laughing was something I genuinely needed. I'd gotten bad news earlier that day and could have carried that anger all night. Instead, I was barefoot in the grass screaming over a basketball game like we'd won the NBA Finals. That's the memory I want to hold onto. The bad news was real, but so was that laughter, that joy. Both lived in the same day.
The Little Blessings Kept Coming
After basketball, we showered, got comfortable, and Avery made breakfast for dinner. After all that running, it tasted extra good.
I also had something else to celebrate: my third Poshmark sale. I've been selling clothes and items I don't use anymore. Small to somebody else, maybe. Not small to me. I bought the bags, made the labels, posted the items, and now I'm watching it turn into something real. I don't need a huge result overnight, just consistent effort.
Even my printer felt like a blessing. A man down the street was moving and gave me one for free, one that prints, scans, and faxes. Perfect timing for shipping my own orders.
My third sale. That printer. Playing basketball barefoot with my family. Watching my kids lose and knowing they've got chores waiting on them. All of it, a blessing.
One more small victory. I took my braids out, and my hair's grown enough for one ponytail now, sometimes two. That means something after cutting it all off last year. Story for another day.
What I Learned
Life is going to keep life-ing. There will be hard days and good days, sometimes both within hours of each other. I'm learning not to let one bad moment convince me the whole day was bad. Through it all, I have to keep God at the center, even when I can't see the turnaround yet.
Yesterday started with news I didn't want, and it still gave me laughter, a barefoot basketball win, a three-pointer I still can't believe I made, and proof that small things, like my hair growing back, are worth celebrating.
Today, I'm choosing to remember that part.
Life be life-ing, y'all. But I'm still here. I'm still pushing. I'm still building. I'm still laughing. I'm still thanking God. And apparently, I can still hoop too.
What is one good thing you can hold onto today, even if everything else isn't going the way you planned? Tell me in the comments.
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