Tag: Blessings

MANY BLESSINGS

This is the time of year when we look at the world with renewed gratitude for the blessings in our lives. I don’t know why we have to be reminded to be thankful when every day brings its own miracles and blessings. I think we spend so much time focusing our prayers on big blessings—like relief from pain, successful cancer treatment, healthy babies, the safety of our loved ones—that we forget to say thank you for all the mini blessings that we are surrounded by day in and day out.

I am hugely grateful for the medical miracles showered on my friends and my family and equally thankful for those who are now pain-free and wrapped in the arms of Jesus. But I’m focusing now on the many mini blessings I am gifted with.

  • A day when the mail is delivered before dark and it is everything that was scanned on informed delivery saying it was expected today.
  • Waking up next to my sweet husband of more than fifty years.
  • Lunch al fresco with a friend whose white count would allow visitors.
  • I am thankful the local Barnes and Noble carries all five of my books. If you will be in the area, I am doing a book signing on Saturday, Dec 13 Noon- 4 p.m. at the Tuscaloosa Barnes and Noble in Midtown. Stop for one of my books or just stop for a hug! Hope to see you there.
  • The enthusiasm of my thirteen year old great niece who wants to be an author when she is older. She really already is. I’m reading her story as it is born.
  • The arthritis in my fingers remaining at bay for me to knit socks, crochet baby blankets, spin colorful yarn, weave warm scarves, do needlework, and paint and put together tiny pieces for the buildings on my husband’s model railroad.
  • A positive letter from an unexpected source that brought tears to my eyes.
  • Lunch with friends who make time for us to continue decades of friendship.
  • A text message just saying I’m loved. I confess, sometimes it makes me pick up the phone to talk to the sender because no text message can replace the sound of a voice of someone you love.
  • A wonderful cardiac calcium score (4) after going through a difficult test.
  • Celebrating making another orbit around the sun.
  •  Scrapbooks and photo albums that let me relive so many of  the wonderful moments of my life.
  • Good books to read including one my great nephew shared with me that he had been percolating for several years—a stirring sci-fi fantasy. Can’t wait to see how it ends.
  • My readers—veteran followers and new. I love seeing a new name pop up on a review or a new follower. It’s always great when longtime readers and followers leave comments on my blog.
  • I love that I have readers who want to be early recipients of my latest work. One of those early readers is my husband whose lawyer training keeps my characters from doing anything that would land them in jail. Thank you all!

I’m sure there are many more mini blessings, but these are top of mind today. Take a moment to be thankful for not only the major miracle blessings in your life, but for all the little moments when positives rain down on you and make you smile.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Enjoy!

It’s All In How You Look At It

I really detest having household chores to do. Over the years I have developed the ability to ignore dust until right before we’re expecting company. I used to think this dislike was because I had to cram all my chores into the two days a week that I wasn’t working at the office. Now that I’m working only at home, I like them even less because I have so many other ways that I want to spend my time. Luckily, my husband doesn’t want to have anyone constantly disrupting his day to clean around him – a match made in heaven!

There are two or three chores you simply can’t ignore. Jim would say the first is taking out the garbage. Amazing how much garbage two people can make. The dishwasher lessens the burden of kitchen clean up. I love to cook, but not the cleanup.

My least favorite chore is laundry. It seems like you just get it done and there is something in the baskets again ! My sweet husband has started waiting to put his clothes in the laundry on laundry day so I can have this nanosecond of pleasure in seeing all empty baskets.

His sweet actions made me stop to think that I am looking at this all wrong. Baskets full of clothes to wash means we have plenty to wear and I only have to take them to the washer and dryer, not down to the stream to pound on rocks.

The garbage means we have plenty to eat. And even the dust means we have places and furniture for the dust to collect on.

Beginning today, they aren’t chores any more. They are simply every day blessings of my life….but I hope Jim still lets me enjoy a moment of empty basket bliss from time to time!