To be honest, I feel selfish and even smug posting about a OWL
while this great disaster is still unfolding in California.
My thoughts and prayers are with those whose lives have been turned upside down.
On a frigid day at the end of the year, I was leaving a magnificent office building when my OLW first appeared. I am not a fan of the doctor appointments that accompany growing older, but I appreciate having world class medical care close to home in a magnificent building that looks as if it belongs in NYC! I really do appreciate the closeness that lets me get to the pool before my appointment and home in minutes, instead of spending the day on the train and subways.
I appreciate this chapter of life filled with eager-to-change-the-world grad students, grateful-to-be-in-the-pool friends, and not-too-far-away grands. Those grads force me to read and reflect on the challenges of languages and cultures. My friends hold me accountable to attend classes, even those at 6:45 AM. They share the joys and challenges of getting older and encourage me to attend luncheons and concerts that I would never notice on my own. The opportunity to watch my grands grow and explore their ever-changing interests is a blessing that I never take for granted.
I appreciate my children who share snippets of their successes and challenges allowing me to live, again, through their experiences. I appreciate those nieces and nephews who still reach out to share their experiences and concerts allowing me to maintain connections with my "old" life.
Sure, at times I wish there were more trips and I would still like that house at the beach, but I appreciate the opportunity be semi-retired, semi-busy, and semi-loved. I appreciate the opportunity to "grow older" that so many are not afforded. My goal is to look beyond the day to day challenges, aches and pains and with respect to all those who have lost so much, I hope to try to appreciate someone and or something in each and every day.
appreciate: to grasp the nature, worth, quality, or significance of: to value or admire; to judge; to recognize with gratitude; to increase in number or value
4 comments:
Anita, I appreciate this post! It's an excellent gratitude reminder. Being in Southern California, I can tell you that it feels right and not selfish, to remember the things we appreciate--big and small.
What a great word! We all have things to be grateful for, but without a prompt, we don't always think about what they are.
I agree with Becky. It helps to have reminders to focus on appreciation & gratitude! Thank you for sharing today.
That is one beautiful choice - - a word that encourages gratitude and keeps the focus on blessings and positive things. To appreciate and remain mindful of what is good is to choose to be happy. I like your thinking!
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