When Life Hands You the Unexpected!
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Billy and Susan were devastated that their father had died. Their superhero was only a memory now. A few months went by, and their father’s lawyer called them to meet about their inheritance. After the lawyer read the will, one child was smiling and the other was frowning. Billy was smiling because his father left him a million dollars. Susan was left with 20 acres of land, 5 of which were used to plant lemon trees.

What do you do when a gift you receive doesn’t meet expectations? Keep reading, and you will find out the one key you need to turn any situation around.
Billy went on with his life, but Susan was confused about why her father would leave her with just land and some lemons. She pondered over and over about why this happened to her. All she could see was Billy buying a new house, a new car, and living the good life. A year went by, and it seemed at first that Susan’s situation wasn’t getting better until one hot day in Florida, when a lunch with her friend Barbara changed everything.

As they were eating and catching up, the waiter came and took their order. As it was company policy, it was the server’s job to tell the guests about any new items on the menu. The waiter suggested their new homemade lemonade. Both Susan and Barbara ordered the lemonade and were amazed. Susan asked the waiter how long they would have it on the menu because it was the best lemonade she had ever had. The waiter told her he didn’t know, because sometimes there were shortages of lemons to make it.
As he walked away, a light bulb went off in Susan’s head. On her drive home, she quickly got on her computer researching, planning, and thinking. She realized that she could actually sell lemons to restaurants around her town. She also figured out she could be a distributor of lemons if she grew more trees to service other restaurants across the country.
This concept worked for Susan, and she became what seemed like an overnight success. She was now a multimillionaire and later built her new house with her family on the acreage. She also built a lemon tasting complex for people to come by and try new creations made from lemons. Her brother later joined her company as COO, and it truly became a family business.
Years went by, and Susan’s dad’s lawyer came to her with a letter titled For Your Eyes Only. Her dad had written the letter years before he passed.

The letter read:

Susan,
Daddy loves you. I know you may be confused about why I left you land instead of giving you a million dollars. As a parent, it’s my job to know my children’s strengths. Your brother Billy is good at working but doesn’t really tap into his creative side. You, on the other hand, have always been creative a risk-taker, someone who doesn’t mind walking a different path.
I knew you might be upset at first about your inheritance, but I also knew you would take the lemons I gave you and make lemonade. I knew once you figured it out, you would look out for your brother because you have a big heart. By the time you’re reading this letter, I know things have already turned around for you and your family.
As Susan closed the letter, she used the top of her shirt to wipe the flowing streams from her eyes.
What is the key to life that we can take from this story? Perspective is everything. How you view life is what you get from it. Susan finally realized that she could always turn her lemons into lemonade.

In life, we sometimes face conditions we didn’t expect, but we always have the choice to live life on our terms despite those conditions. We have the choice to stay with the lemons or to make lemonade.
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