I try to live my life remembering to be grateful every day. I'm not always very good at this, but I try :) But sometimes it helps to write it down and remember the good, especially in the face of difficulties and so many other things going on. So, today, here are some of the things I've been amazingly blessed by:- My mom and my sister will be visiting next week. Need I say more? I can't wait! Girl time in excess FTW!
- Summer!! I get to work on my own research, and I get to set my own hours (which means I don't feel so guilty about my natural night-owl tendencies). But it's also warm and beautiful and the river is amazing, and gah, I just love this season :)
- My job. Spring semester did try to throw me down a flight of stairs and laugh about it, but that over, and in the fall I'll start my tenure-track line. This bump is like winning the academic lottery. And I am both humbled beyond belief to be here, and totally excited. (And I get my own lab!! It's so exciting I can't even begin to tell you!!)
- Summer concerts. A friend and I went and saw The Decemberists last Sunday and it was just amazing. I didn't want it to end and wanted to be swallowed by the music. If you get a chance to see them live, they really put on an amazing show! And there are several more bands planning on stopping in Missoula this summer and it's going to be great :)
These are my major moments of gratitude right now, though there are a ton more little things (like, thank heavens for indoor plumbing--something I really don't think gets enough love ;), but obviously I can't write them all down. But I like to remind myself of those things I'm really luck for :)
What are you grateful for today?
I am all about summer too!! :) I love this time of year before it all really gets going. Enjoy your time off and relax! :)
ReplyDeleteThis was wonderful to read, Meradeth! What a lovely way to begin a Friday! Aloha!
ReplyDeleteIt is important to remember to be grateful. It's so easy to focus on the negative that sometimes we forget how lucky we are. I'm very grateful for summer weather, and of course enjoying it with my boys.
ReplyDeleteFamily coming will keep you busy! Have fun!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great post, Mer. And one I needed right now. I'm smack in the middle of that life -tryin- to-throw-me-down-the-stairs scenario.
ReplyDeleteIt'd really be easy to tell you all the things that I'm NOT grateful for...my husband lost his job... we have four kids and no health insurance (any parent knows that's when they get sick or break a bone...and my son cut himself to the point of needing stitches. UGH)... my migraines are kicking my ass. And on and on and on. It's so much easier to focus on what we don't have than what we do. And I'm so guilty of that lately.
So I decided to follow your lead and write down what I am grateful for. In no particular order...
1. I have a husband, jobless or otherwise, whom I love and who loves me.
2. I have four kids. 10 years of infertility treatments... how could I not be grateful?!?
3. I have a healthy family... despite my son needing stitches and allergies for one of the twins and my migraines... we are healthy. That's something a lot of people can't claim.
4. My sight. Larry was recently diagnosed with a type of very aggressive cataracts. We (meaning me) don't really think about cataracts as a "young" person's problem (I mean, come on! That's something my grandma had to deal with LOL), and we (I) don't think of it being something that could make a person lose their sight. I mean, I took my grandma to the eye center, they did the surgery, and she went home an hour or so later. Easy, peasy, right? Um, no. It's definitely a problem someone younger than my grandmother can have. And it's most definitely something that can steal their vision. So I've been looking at things differently since Larry was diagnosed last week and I've done some research and learned about the different types of cataracts there are and how they can lead to blindness in certain situations (most unlikely, but still a possibility). And what I've noticed is, I can write a post a mile long about the things I'd miss without my sight. My kids' smiles, sunrise, reading, writing, the birds at my birdfeeder, and on it goes. So my eyesight...a big check mark next to it as something I'm very grateful for. (and if you are wondering about Larry... he's going to be fine. His is a case that could lead to blindness, but, thankfully, our eye doctor and the surgeon have a good handle on things---one more thing I'm grateful for!)
5. My family volunteers at a near by food kitchen. I guess you can probably guess I'm grateful that we are the ones serving food and not the families who need it.
6. My family has been spared a lot of the flooding in our area (Houston and its suburbs). People have lost their lives, and thousands had to evacuate. But our subdivision is high enough that we haven't had any flooding. We didn't realize this fact when we moved in, but we are grateful to find out now. :)
So there you go. six things I'm thankful for. I could go on, but I've babbled on too long as it is. Oh! That makes me think of one more thing I'm grateful for. A friend who always reads my Red-Bull fueled emails. You know who you are. :)
Michelle
Congrats on your tenure track line and I'm always grateful as I can be
ReplyDeleteWonderful things here! :) I'm grateful that summer vacation is starting in one week, that there are lovely flowers all around me, and that I have awesome CP's who'll be reading my latest manuscript soon.
ReplyDeleteYes, getting tenure and having family visit are definitely things to be grateful for.
ReplyDeleteYay to girl time--especially FAMILY girl time!
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! It is always important to stop and think about what we are thankful for. I love summer and getting to spend more time outside. I also have a little time off from work and can go in and do the things I need to do on my own hours. So nice! :)
ReplyDeleteGlad you are going to get to spend time with your mom and sister. Yeah! And next semester is going to be awesome!