This is an odd numbered year. I don't have my kids this year for the Thanksgiving holiday or weekend. They are with their dad. Not having my kids part-time is always difficult, but this is especially hard for me because of the season this is...Thanksgiving. Gratitude for what I have in this life...and thankfulness for where I am in relation to where I have been. My kids are two of the most wonderful blessings I have ever been given. I love sharing this time of year with them because they are a big part of my thankfulness each and every day.
I have people in my life who don't seem to have a lot to be thankful for right now. One of them has had health issues her whole life and now is going through treatment similar to chemotherapy. She is sick a lot. She still lives at home because she is too sick to work. Her family sometimes doesn't seem to appreciate her and seems to treat her as more of a burden than a blessing. So sad. But she keeps her friends close and her spirits up most of the time. That is so admirable. In spite of all she is going through, from the outside looking in I can see reasons for her to be thankful. I have another friend who was dreading going back to her hometown for Thanksgiving because she had a horrible childhood and has a hard time for days afterward whenever she goes home. But that's her family...and she went. She also has some personal ongoing issues and I know some days it's a struggle for her to get out of bed and make it through another day. But she does. She has friends who make her feel special and let her know she is loved...people who support her for the person she is.
Whenever I am tempted to look down at my circumstances and give in to self pity or despair, I am reminded of how much I have had, and continue to have, to be thankful for. And each new day holds potential for more of those blessings.
Tomorrow's a new day....
No comments:
Post a Comment