On being Thankful...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  My last post was a sad one, but since then I have been on the upside of this roller-coaster called life and am starting to feel better about things today.  I read somewhere that when people move into an awareness of gratitude that it is hard for them to be in  an upset state at the same time.  I see this to be true most of the time as finding things to be grateful for really does help to switch my energy around to a more positive mindset.

This Thanksgiving (and all Thanksgivings) I can always find 100’s of things to be thankful for, but to keep it short this year I am just going to name 10 in no particular order, nor are they necessarily the most important – but they are what I came up with right now:

1. I’m so thankful for my family.  And not just my immediate family, but my extended family as well.  They have all been so supportive of me throughout the past few months (not to mention my entire life) and I feel incredibly lucky to be part of such an amazing group of people.

2. I’m grateful for my friends – all of them.  Yet I’m also so thankful to the ones who understand this situation, about what is going on, about why Jonny and I are each in so much pain.  And I'm also thankful for those who don't know all of the details about this, but don't really need to, because you still support us and care for us anyway.  I’m also thankful to those friends who read my blog and have empathy, those who talk to me about it sometimes, who write me little love notes and encouraging messages once and awhile, instead of just reading it and not saying anything.  I’m grateful for those friends who check in with me, who check in with Jonny, who continue to show their love.  Thank you for that, it doesn’t go unnoticed and is so incredibly appreciated and helps more than you know.

3. I’m super thankful for laughter.  It’s so fun.  So healing.  So good for my soul.  USM is also all of these things too – I’m thankful for that as well.

4. I’m thankful for my house, for the food that we will eat tomorrow and for the fact that I have limitless options for food to buy and consume.  I missed that a lot in Latin America, as I rarely had access to organic food, fancy cheese, exotic spices, brown sugar, good wine and more.  Now I have too much access to it, as America loves to over-consume, but still I’m glad I have it, because come on – who doesn’t love a good chunk of Camembert on a toasted baguette with a glass of Petite Syrah?  I wasn’t getting that in Mexico, that’s for sure.  So thank you America for all of your fun and fabulous food options.

5. I’m thankful to have a job, and as much as I don’t like it sometimes, I know that I am really lucky to have a job and to have a good one at that – and so I’m thankful.  And as lonely as it is to work from home, I’m also thankful that I get to make my own schedule, have lazy mornings and not have to wear high heels or uncomfy dress clothes ever.

6. I’m thankful to be surrounded by beautiful nature again.  I missed green space a lot while I was in Oaxaca and it feels good to be back in the land of fresh air, water and trees.  With that, I’m so thankful that I can drink water out of the tap again….drinking only bottled water was getting real old…especially to me due to the amount of water that I feel like I need to be consuming all the time.

7. I’m thankful for my health and my family’s health.  For the most part we are all doing good – it’s a real blessing for sure.

8. I’m thankful for all of the experiences that I have had thus far in my life, whether good or bad, they have all brought me to where I am now.  For example, if I hadn’t gotten divorced from Tyler I would have never gone to Belize, and consequently to Peru, Mexico, Guatemala, Cuba, etc. etc….I wouldn’t have learned about pain, empathy and compassion, and I wouldn’t have met Jonny and had all of those amazing experiences with him….which brings me to #9 which is….

9. I’m thankful for Jonny.  He has been one of the greatest teachers in my life thus far and continues to be one.  As hard as this has all been, I’m thankful for it.  I’m thankful for every experience I have had with him, including this one, as I know that this one is helping me to work through some major lessons and ultimately bringing me to a better place.  I would probably be even more thankful for this particular experience if we were to get back together….but you know, whatever, I still have gratitude for it, as well as for him and Jonny being who he is...

10.  I am so grateful for my connection to my spirituality and to God.  It helps me so much to know that all of this is happening for my highest good and that I'm being completely held and taken care of.....no matter what.

If you made it this far thanks for reading through my cheesy post and Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!