Several of you have asked me how Maleigha did at the Iowa Horse Fair Queen Contest. She did not place, but she did really well with her pattern, and she was very pleased with how her horse performed. Maleigha seems to be my child that always finds something positive to take away from every experience, and she is genuinely happy for those around her when they succeed. She was super excited for Addy Howell, Casey’s daughter, who placed as first runner-up. She rode beautifully and did a wonderful job. Maleigha’s optimism and ability to find the positives makes my heart happy. If you asked her about her weekend, she will tell you it was one of the most amazing weekends of her life. She was chosen to ride in the Parade of Breeds on Saturday in full Native Arabian costume on her horse. She was so thrilled as people stopped her to take her picture, and she LOVES to be the center of attention. So, even though she didn’t achieve her overall goal, she was able to appreciate the opportunities she was given.
My wish for you this week is that we can all be optimistic and find the positives in our daily lives. Working in healthcare right now is really hard and stressful, and it is so easy to lose sight of the difference we make to our patients. I recently watched an interview with Iowa Women’s Basketball Coach Lisa Bluder where she explained that she has been repeatedly telling her team “Why not us?” during the course of the NCAA tournaments. This really resonated with me and how we lead Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics. Over the course of my career, there have been many times that we have been faced with doubt, skepticism and downright disbelief. Through it all, we have persevered with the belief that we can accomplish anything. If someone is going to be wildly successful, why not us?! So, as we head into Spring, let’s do so with a renewed sense of optimistic positivity. When you do the right things for the right reasons, you will not fail!
