The Sky’s Not Falling

An era has ended! Last week Bobby Bowden coached and won his last FSU football game. Thankfully, he finished his career in style. Now all the Seminole fans are curious to see what Head Coach in-waiting, Jimbo Fisher, has to offer. During an interview, Jimbo said that the main thing he learned from Bobby is “no matter how bad it gets, the sky’s not falling.” In other words, don’t get panicked, everything’s gonna turn out fine.

The quote “the sky’s not falling” jumped out at me with a crack, as if it was lined to me from the swing of a wooden bat. And I realized that when I get lost in worry, I think the sky IS falling! Of course, I’m speaking metaphorically here. 😉 I had never thought of worry from that angle before…When we worry we forget about all of the wonderful blessings around us, and we spiral into a torrential sea of worry. Why do we worry? Because we think the sky is falling, and if we don’t figure out how to stop it soon, we’ll be crushed.  But the sky isn’t falling, and this is something to remember when times get tough…or when a light snow starts to fall in Mississippi! (As I’m writing this post, it’s snowing outside. Keep in mind, the streets are clear and the snow isn’t sticking to them. But that hasn’t stopped Henny Penny from closing down all the schools for the day and Loosey Goosey and Ducky Lucky from raiding the grocery stores. :))

If you look at Bobby Bowden’s career over the last 20 years, you see some incredible achievements and losses. Under his reign FSU won 2 National Championships, two of his players won the Heisman, and, at one point, he was the all-time winningest coach in college football! But on a darker note, many of his players were expelled for cheating, some of his players were arressted for stealing, and he lost the all-time winningest coach title when the NCAA stripped him of some of his wins! I can only imagine what it must feel like to achieve the epitome of success in your field and then have the carpet yanked out from under you. Yet no matter what has happend, Bobby seems to revert back to that simple idea — “the sky’s not falling”. How does he do it? I think it all boils down to his gratitude for his family. No matter what happens on the field, he still has the people he loves most in life. His children, wife and grandkids remind him that he is loved and cherished. In a nut shell, he chooses to focus on and be grateful for all the things he has.

Whenever you get lost in worry and concern, tell yourself that the sky’s not falling. Even if times seem troubled and filled with hardship, you can choose to focus on things you love and that fill you with a sense of gratitude. Being grateful for the people in your life, your health, your successes, etc. reminds you that things are better than you realize. If being grateful in itself doesn’t fully silence the Chicken Little that’s running around in your head, call a loved one and appreciate the time they’re sharing with you over the phone. Worry begets worry, and gratitude begets gratitude!