After two consecutive weeks of hearing crime and tragedy come across the scanner in our newsroom, yesterday was a welcome change.

Since the New Year began we have had murders, shootings and fatal accidents. Package that with freezing temperatures and cloudy days and it can be awfully hard to force a smile sometimes.

But yesterday was different. Yesterday, my first assignment was to head over to Warren Manor with Leesha and cover (insert drumroll here) a piano playing dog. No, this is not a misprint, I did say a piano playing dog.

Shannon Linden and her sidekick Little Bear arrived to share a few tricks and a few laughs with the residents. After hearing Little Bear play a few numbers on his small toy piano it would have been hard not to leave with a smile.

Sometimes all it takes is something as simple as a piano playing dog or a funny joke to raise our spirits when things get tough. For the past two weeks, there have been a number of items that have caused tempers to flair in our community. Lives have been taken, lost and wasted. That can take a lot of the fun out of this job.

Luckily, it’s not all bad news. Once in a while we have the pleasure of covering an event, like Little Bear’s show, that lighten the mood again.

Living in the Black Belt we don’t always have a lot to laugh about. In many cases a lot of us feel like we are the region the state has forgotten. Crime and unemployment are on the rise and jobs are scarce. These are tough times no doubt.

It’s easy to dwell on the negatives, but it makes more sense to look for the positives and put them to work.

If each of us can find a way to begin our day with a smile instead of convincing ourselves we are waking up to another set of problems good things will happen.

There will always be challenges. Things won’t always fall into our lap. But that shouldn’t stop us from pushing forward.

If you find yourself a little down in the dumps today, try to find something you can smile about. Remind yourself of a funny story. Think of a funny joke. Or, hit up www.selmatimesjournal.com and have a look at Little Bear hammering out a few tunes on our video. I dare you to frown after seeing that.