Today is Thanksgiving. As I think back and reflect over the past few months, I see that life has happened to me. And because I have chosen to be open to what life has to offer, there now is so much in my life to be thankful for. And just like the heart stones, these things often times come to me in ways that appear unexpected.
Being the recipient of a kind gesture from a friend or one of my kids.
Being provided opportunites to learn and grow at work.
Living in a safe space I can call my own.
Being alone, and yet not feeling lonely.
Being around people, and yet not feeling lonely.
Having a chance to influence and have a positive impact on someone's life.
Having an opportunity to volunteer with an organization that is near and dear to my heart.
Enrolling in a jewelry/metal working class and finding joy in the creative outlet it provides me.
Interviewing for and now waiting expectantly to hear from a potential new employer for a job I am excited about.
Feeling my heart open and grow in ways I never knew it could as I nurture a relationship with a beautiful woman I have met. On line of all places.
And so many more things. I mentioned that these things have come to me in ways that appear unexpected. Is that true? Or are they coming to me now only because I am ready for them?
I just reat my very first post. In it I wrote, "But this isn't a blog to complain about divorce. Or to complain about the wonderful mother my kids are fortunate to have. It's about how I am doing with it all, what I can embrace now and what I can let go. And it's about how I can use my experience to grow." Little did I realize what was in store for me over the 12 months that followed me writing this. Embracing the now and letting go of what I can. I have used my experience to grow and learn. Of all the things I am grateful for, perhaps the #1 thing I am grateful for is that I am in a position to embrace all of those things I list above. It's been a difficult road and I had plenty of doubts about whether or not I'd get here. But I am.
My dear friend Meg sent me this poem Molly Fumia. "To be joyful in the universe is a brave and reckless act. The courage for joy springs not from certainty of human experience, but the surprise. Our astonishment at being loved, our bold willingness to love in return, these wonders promise the possibility of joyfulness, not matter how often and how harshly love seem to be lost. Therefore, despite the world's sorrows, we give thanks for our loves, for our joys, and for the continued courage to be happily surprised".
Here's to being happily surprised. Every day.
