Today's MOZEN: Keep The Faith 9/24/2014

I was in a bit of a funk today. I'm always a bit melancholy when Summer ends and Autumn begins. Yes, Fall is a spectacular season in the Hudson Valley. The whole region is alive with breathtaking color. It features warm, dry days with plentiful sunshine, and nights that are crisp and clear (GREAT sleeping weather). Wonderful. What's not to like? But I'm always sorry to see the Summer, my favorite season, go, too. I'm fortunate to have the Sicilian genes that make Summer so manageable for me. I tease my friends that I get dark merely from looking at a photo of the sun! For me, it is also my most productive season. I love the outdoor activities most frequently associated with Summer. So, I'm ambivalent about the change: I love the fall but hate losing summer to have to get it. It was getting me down.

So, I decided to take a walk in my old neighborhood. It was a beautiful morning and I had to drop something off with a friend in the area anyway. A brisk walk can usually be quite effective in aiding me to change my mindset. However, on this day, it was not working. In fact, it had an adverse effect. Being in my old neighborhood was actually making me feel lonely. Like the summer, I found myself missing what was gone. It was pretty depressing. After stopping at my friend's, I was making my way back to my apartment when I noticed the glass door from one of the houses that I was passing was ajar and had a sign on it. I felt it unusual for the door to be open like that. I thought, perhaps, the sign would explain it. I came closer to read it. Here is what I found:

No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.

This is what I mean when I tell people to keep the faith. It has nothing to do with religion. It has everything to do with the belief that if you keep an open mind and an open heart, peace will come to you, sometimes in the smallest but most effective ways. Messages of faith, hope, and love are all around and come to us, often in the strangest ways and in the oddest places.