In the land of the grumps and the gigglers, you see,
There’s a choice in your heart—who you want to be.
You can frown. You can grumble. You can sulk in a stew.
But the chooser of moods, dear friend, is you.
Your attitude’s not a thing you catch like the flu.
It’s a thing you select. It’s a thing that you do.
You can wake up and say, “Oh, what a gray day.”
Or say, “This could be a grand day for hooray.”
Some people will say, “It’s because of the rain.”
But the rain’s not the boss of their joy or their pain.
When they fume and flare, when they stomp and shout,
They don’t know the problem is withing, not without.
We grumble, we blame, we protest, and complain.
We point at the world to explain all our pain.
But oh, what a trick that we play on ourselves,
When the key to our joy’s on our own shelves.
If you think you’ll be sad, you’ll sure prove it true.
The storm clouds will come to challenge you.
If you choose gladness and look for the light,
You’ll find sunny places pop up in your sight.
Now here is a secret you simply must know:
Some things won’t change. Yes, that’s so.
You can’t fix the rain or control every bump,
But you can choose to smile and not to slump.
God holds the big things in his mighty hand,
Trusting in him makes other things less grand.
If you loosen your grip on the things you can’t hold,
You’ll find in your heart that a bright joy will unfold.
Some stick with their tantrums for hours and days,
They wallow and wade in their miserable maze.
But you can step out. You can change how you see.
You can say, “Being grumpy is no longer for me.”
You can dance and skip. You can spin and cheer,
Happiness is a choice that can always be near.
You can trust and be thankful. You can laugh and sing,
Because joy isn’t found in the next shiny new thing.
So the next time you’re low, in a mood all askew,
Ask yourself kindly, “Is this what I choose?”
The chooser of moods, when it’s said and done,
Is you, my dear friend. Yes, you are the one.
