What’s in a wink? It can be playful or sexy, coy or cautious. It can hide a tear, acknowledge a friend, or be an emboldening gesture that says, ‘Yup, you got it.'

It took me a long time to get it. And, I’m not entirely sure I’m completely enlightened about life and the direction mine is going. But it wasn’t too long ago that I realized that with a little attitude adjustment, all can be good regardless of the shit slung your way.

It’s been years in the making, but just the other day-- while moving the clothes from the washer to the dryer-- I started having flashbacks (which are better than hot flashes, which I think I’m starting to have too…but that’s another story). It was like a motion picture in my mind showing me my most embarrassing moments, my most frightening moments, my mistakes, and, of course, each man who sauntered in and out of my life, taking a piece of my heart with him when he left.

But then the film in my head switched to the birth of my kids, my most favorite friends, my kick-ass house near the beach that never in a bazillion years did I think I could own, the sound of the ocean waves that I can hear at night, the belly laugh that my Godson belts out when you tickle his sides, and my overall feeling of peace. Life is good. No, it’s f-in fantastic.

For most of my years, I’ve lived life as a drama. Always wondering when things were going to take that turn for the better. What I hadn’t realized, until recently, is that somewhere along the way, it already had. I just neglected to acknowledge it. Or, perhaps, my life was always good, but my attitude wasn’t.

Shutting the dryer door and running up the basement stairs I said aloud to absolutely no one, “My life isn’t a drama, a horror, or a mystery. It’s a romantic comedy."

If you’ve been a reader of South Shore Woman and Wink webzine for the last few years-- or if you just found us--- we hope that you realize that this concept is at our core: Live life to the fullest, follow your dreams, and add love and laughter wherever and whenever you can.

Money may be tight, kids may be causing trouble, hubby may need a swift kick to the backside, and you might be exhausted and PMS-ing. Take a second and find the humor in the situation. I realize sometimes tragedy hits and it’s not funny at all. But I’ve seen some of the strongest women—dealing with their child’s cancer, their child’s heroine addiction, or their husband’s suicide—find some color amid the black and gray.

Maureen Hancock, one of our past cover girls, said it best when she told us, “Too many women are not living their dream and just existing without feeling fulfilled.”

Maureen, by the way, was in a coma as a child, was in a car accident as an adult that almost killed her, has lost many family members, yet, she infuses comedy into her daily life and she is now the star of reality T.V. show Psychic in Suburbia which recently aired on the STYLE network.

She’s living the romantic comedy of her dreams. And so can you.

By Stephanie Neil

Stephanie Neil is a journalist. Her business, technology, and human interest stories have appeared in a variety of print and online newspapers and magazines including eWeek, Managing Automation, The Harvard Alumni Bulletin, Huggies Baby Network, South Shore Woman, and The Boston Globe.  She lives on the South Shore with her two kids, two cats, and a dog. Contact info: stephanieneil@comcast.net  or 781-378-1652. Follow her on Twitter @StephanieNeil