Sometimes important lessons can come from the most unexpected places.

This weekend I had the immense pleasure of spending time with a portion of my family which included one of our newest additions. Y’all, being around babies has a way of rebooting and straightening me out especially when wonky world events are weighing me down.

At the beginning of last week I had to fight to remain in the light. I wrote about it in the blog in “Their Eyes Are Watching Us” if you missed it. My heart hurt thinking about the ways it feels like we adults are not doing all that we can to make this world a better place for the children coming up behind us. I felt that pain again staring into the eyes of my precious little cousin this weekend but he managed to teach my grown tale something over breakfast that I wasn’t expecting.

While his mother was out taking a walk he and I had a whole conversation over oatmeal and puffs with Gracie’s Corner playing in the background. Suddenly “If You’re Happy And You Know It” popped up and y’all, we both had to pause and have a little dance break. Such simple words had a powerful affect on me as they planted themselves deeply in my heart.

I’m happy

I choose to be happy

Live happily, happy

I choose to be happy

Live happily

~ Gracie’s Corner

Y’all, I needed that in my life at that moment. My little cousin broke out in his baby praise dance and I joined him as we spun around the room to the catchy Soca beat.

That nursery rhyme had a message for me. How often as adults do we fall down into wells of despair? How often do we surrender our joy to circumstances? How often do we turn our backs on hope?

I can’t give up. I love these children too much not to fight for them. I may not have given birth to them but they live and beat in my heart and I accept the privilege to make their way brighter.

I choose to be happy, for them.

Check out Gracie’s Corner on YouTube if you need a pick me up. She may have a lesson or two for you too.

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Marta is an award winning filmmaker, writer and producer committed to sharing the rich and complex stories of America’s Heartland region.  Marta wears several hats as Chief Creative-in-Charge of MartaGwyn Productions, LLC as well as the Co-Founder and Senior Grant Writer of Youngblood and Associates, LLC and Chief Operations Officer of Marta Collier Educational Systems and Services, LLC.

Marta is also the founder and editor-in-chief of TheWRITEaddiction.  An online community of writers that publish creative and inspirational works daily at www.TheWriteAddiction.com.

Marta is an alumna of The Ohio State University and Tougaloo College with degrees in Sociology and English-Journalism and resides in Little Rock, Arkansas, with her husband and unconventional college sweetheart of 10 years, Terrance Youngblood.