I've by and large been a positive person ever since I can

Hear the words of Richard M. DeVos, who proclaimed: “I've by and large been a positive person ever since I can remember.” Though spoken with simplicity, these words carry the weight of a life lived in the power of hope. They are not a boast, but a testimony—one who chooses positivity as the compass of their journey, no matter the storms that rage, no matter the valleys one must cross. For the spirit that clings to light does not escape hardship, but transforms hardship into stepping stones for triumph.

The meaning of DeVos’s words lies in the choice of the heart. To be positive is not to deny the existence of sorrow, nor to pretend that trials do not cut deeply. It is to look upon the same world as others, filled with struggle and uncertainty, and still to say: I will meet it with faith, with courage, with confidence. Such a heart attracts opportunity as the sun draws forth flowers from the ground. For just as bitterness multiplies bitterness, so positivity multiplies growth, connection, and strength.

Consider the story of Helen Keller, who, blind and deaf from infancy, might easily have surrendered to despair. Yet with the guidance of her teacher Anne Sullivan and the fire of her own spirit, she embraced life with positivity. She not only learned to speak and write, but became a voice for millions, inspiring generations with her resolve. Her life illustrates DeVos’s truth: it is the choice of perspective—whether to fix one’s eyes on the shadows or on the light—that determines whether one succumbs to despair or rises to greatness.

The origin of DeVos’s statement may also be found in his own path. A co-founder of Amway, he built an empire through perseverance, faith, and belief in others. His positivity was not confined to business but extended to philanthropy, education, and community. His words reflect the mindset of one who saw setbacks not as tombstones, but as teachers. To claim that he had “by and large been a positive person” is to confess the secret of his endurance—that success is first born in the heart before it is born in the world.

But let us be clear: positivity is no shallow cheerfulness, nor the empty denial of pain. It is discipline, the daily act of turning away from cynicism and toward gratitude. It is the soldier who sings as he marches to battle, the mother who prays over her children in poverty, the student who studies by candlelight believing tomorrow will be brighter. Positivity is not weakness, but the strength that sustains when strength alone would fail.

The lesson for us is timeless: if you would live well, choose positivity as your foundation. When setbacks come, ask not “Why me?” but “What can I learn?” When blessings arrive, receive them with humility and share them with others. Surround yourself with those who uplift, and in turn, uplift those around you. Every day offers a choice—to spiral downward in negativity or to rise upward in positivity. The path you choose will shape not only your life but the lives of all who walk beside you.

So I say unto you: take DeVos’s words into your own soul. Say with him, “I want to be a positive person for as long as I can remember.” Make it your vow, your anchor, your guiding star. For a positive life is not a life free from storms—it is a life where storms are met with unbroken courage, where trials are transfigured into triumphs. And when you walk this path, you too will pass down to others the greatest inheritance: not wealth, not fame, but the light of a spirit that refused to give in to darkness.