Finding Gratitude in Chaos.

With a month and a half left in the year, 2020 is shaping up to be the longest and weirdest year in history. The news has been full of one tragedy after another.  There have been wildfires and protests around the world. Almost 200 hundred innocent people were killed by a horrific explosion in Beirut.  We can't forget the murder hornets. There have been many Iconic deaths this year, but none more notable than that of the Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsburg. We had the world's longest Presidential election, and throughout all of this, we faced a global pandemic. 

In a year that has literally been one of the worst years in my life, I am still trying to look at the positive things.  I am still trying to reflect on all the reasons I have to be grateful. When I sat down to think of things I was grateful for, I struggled at first. All of the usual things came to mind. Of Course, I am grateful for my family, friends, home, and heath.  Don't get me wrong, these are the most important things in the world to me. I have the best family and friends in the world. They stand by me and support me no matter what. They have shaped me into a better person. I am blessed to have them in my life. I am blessed to have them in life.

I wanted to look deeper. I wanted to find things I didn't realize I was grateful for. I was looking for things that were less obvious to me, things I never thought about being grateful for. Things I have taken for granted. I found so many things, I took for granted. Music, books, and traditions were a few of the many things I came up with.  I also wanted to look at this year. Even though this year has been utterly awful for a multitude of reasons, I wanted to find something positive in it.

This year I have developed an appreciation for little things such as toilet paper, but more than that I developed a great respect for people who work in stores. They take so much crap from the public and still show up every day. I have a new appreciation for every minute I get to spend with the people I love; even if it is only for five minutes. I am cherishing every single minute because I do not know when I will see them again.

We have always lived a hectic life. Between the kid's activities and my husband's work schedule, sit down family dinners are not a regular occurrence. With the pandemic forcing us to slow down we have had more family dinners and game nights. As a family, we discovered new stuff about each other, as well as about ourselves. It has been nothing short of marvelous. While we missed out on such much this year, we gained so much in return.

As we sit down with our loved ones this holiday season, take a moment to look around you. Be thankful for everything you see. The big stuff, but be grateful for the small stuff as well.