Most of the time fear is a "what-if-worst-case" scenario that we play over and over in our minds.  My cousin as a young girl had a debilitating fear that monsters would get her if she slept in the dark.  To this day, as a grown woman she still sleeps with the lights on while her husband sleeps in the guest bedroom.  While most of us would look at this situation and possibly even laugh at how illogical her fear is, to her... it is very real.

A few years ago, as we started to enter our country's economic slump I found myself watching the evening news; FOX, CNN, MSNBC... all of them.  Over time I started to notice some changes in myself.  I had transitioned from an eternal optimist into a pessimist.  I was letting war, politics, racism, sexism, and the rest of the mind-filth penetrate my psyche.  Rather than "sleep with the light on" I decided to establish a new rule in our house... no news... no radio, tv, newspaper or iPhone updates.  The new policy worked... despite the fact that there are real concerns out there, I found that my family and I are once again "glass-half-full."

As I walk around car shows nowadays I hear more and more negativity.  Try to be a positive influence in your community and take our grandmother's advice... "never talk religion or politics."  Let's do the best we can to get back to talking about engines, interiors and paint jobs... much more fun.