To Suzie of Texas

Suzie asks: Hey Sydney - I truly do believe that there is someone out there for everyone… but I just cannot seem to find him. I go through all the bad ones, and just cannot seem to find a good one. Any advice? Thanks

 

Sydney says: Well, Suzie from Texas, you can start with an attitude adjustment. It’s a little thing that will make a big difference. I could barely get through all that negativity and all that sadness and all that stinkin’ thinkin’ you’ve got going on in your email. Put a lid on it, sister, and fix your ‘tude!

 Suzie, I’m not being intentionally hard on you. I’m not singling you out. I’m just giving you a bit of tough love, here. Listen to me very carefully: If you want to find that special someone, then you need to start thinking that you will. It’s called hope. Ever hear of it? Oh, it’s a magical phrase, “hope.” Synonymous with “positive thinking,” hope can turn any situation – even your love life – from bad to good.

 The second principle of “healing with love” is saying “buh-bye” to stinkin’ thinkin.’ You, of course, probably already knew that because my book has been on bookshelves for over a week and I am SURE you’ve read it by now. Anyhoo – It’s all about taking control of your mind, rather than letting your mind take control of you.

 Case in point: Not too long ago, we had ourselves a bit of a situation here at SGH. It was called “bomb in a body cavity” and some genius had a bomb stuck… in his body cavity. To make a long story short, a “Code Black” was called, the hospital was shut down and everybody and their momma suddenly went all doom and gloom on me. Oh, the things I heard that day…

 “A quiet board in the morning is a board shot to hell by noon. A quiet board means trouble. A quiet board is death.”

 “There’s not going to be any baby born today. I can’t. I can’t do this without my husband. I can’t do this all alone!”

 “She now has my McDreamy and my McDog. She’s got my McLife!”

 Oh, everybody with their pink mist and their non-working lavender conditioner and their bombs in body cavities – it all really got me down, ya know? Let me tell you, misery is one of the worst communicable diseases out there. And, that day, it seemed like everyone was spreading their unhappy thoughts, their sad feelings, their stinkin’ thinkin’ aimlessly and uselessly. Now, if, instead, everyone looked at the bright side of things, then we all would’ve been a lot better off…

 Did Richard really have to jinx us and say “a quiet board is death?” No, instead, he should have chosen to exclaim, “I love a quiet board! It gives me a moment to reflect on the important things in life – like unicorns.”

 Was it really necessary for Bailey to get so downtrodden about delivering her baby alone? No way, Jose – I just think she needed more hugs.

 Meredith didn’t really need to start her day all dark and twisty with the McDreamy-McDog-and-McLife-stealing, did she? I’d wager that if she hadn’t woken up all broken, then her hand would’ve never ended up on that bomb in a body cavity. Just a guess…

The point is, the staff at Seattle Grace could have acted a little more positively and cheerfully that day. But, coulda woulda shoulda… They didn’t. So, we had an explosion and Dylan died.

 Which brings me back to Suzie.

 Suzie, we all have choices in our lives. We all make decisions. And, no decision is more important than the one to think positively. That’s right, deciding between happy thoughts and bad thoughts IS A CHOICE. A really, truly, super, dooper BIG CHOICE.

 You can CHOOSE to stink think – meaning, you’re contemplating “quiet boards” and how alone you feel when delivering your first child and Addison Montgomery-Shepherd stealing your McDreamy and “bad dates”…

 OR…

 You can CHOOSE to consider the good – unicorns and the power of positive hugging and the sheer fact that there really IS a man out there for you, Suzie. Good things come to those who wait and you’ve just got to be patient. You’ve got to hold your head high, wipe off that mascara and believe – truly believe – that you WILL find your knight in shining whatever… someday.

 Suzie, I’ll leave you with a few words of wisdom from my very own mother: There are no bad dates, just bad dating habits. Good luck and God bless.

 Love,

Sydney