2013. Wow. How does time fly so fast? We measure so much of our lives in time... we have deadlines and milestones and often put so much emphasis on the time factor. For me, 2013 brings many things:
- May marks 10 years of being out of high school.
- September will (hopefully) bring 1 year of not smoking!
- March marks 7 years of marriage with my amazing husband.
- This month marks 4 years since joining our church and February will be 3 years for me as Secretary.
- I'll celebrate my 29th birthday in December... the last time I'll be in my twenties.
...and much more.
Wouldn't it be nice though, to instead of counting the days and months, to count the blessings each of those marks in time signify? I've been having some ups and downs lately in my mood and in life. Nothing major, just happiness and heartbreak.... shock, awe, joy, and worry. Guess those come with the territory of growing up, right? I've felt very reflective, just as I am sure most people do at the start of a new year. I am so unbelievably blessed. So much happens as time passes by. Big and small! Sometimes the smallest things in our everyday lives make us pause... and those are the ones worth holding close.
Wouldn't it be nice though, to instead of counting the days and months, to count the blessings each of those marks in time signify? I've been having some ups and downs lately in my mood and in life. Nothing major, just happiness and heartbreak.... shock, awe, joy, and worry. Guess those come with the territory of growing up, right? I've felt very reflective, just as I am sure most people do at the start of a new year. I am so unbelievably blessed. So much happens as time passes by. Big and small! Sometimes the smallest things in our everyday lives make us pause... and those are the ones worth holding close.
I loaded up Moondoggie in the car tonight. We had to run a few errands and needed to take Chris to get his truck. Once we dropped him off and started driving back home... I glanced over at him several times. Sometimes that little face was looking at me and sometimes he was looking around at the world passing us by. Don't get me wrong... I know he's "just a dog" and nothing can compare the love I have for him to a child (that love I hope to experience one day soon, too!) But I caught myself, beaming. I adore that little, furry, face. I see it everyday, greeting me when I wake and when I get home. It's a simple pleasure and I thanked God for it in that moment. A lot of times, I forget to do that.
"Life moves pretty fast. If yo don't stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it."
(Ferris Bueller)
With that in mind... let's rethink the timeline, above.
- May marks 10 years of learning and making mistakes. Of being humbled and reminded that things don't in fact... go the way you plan and intend. Sometimes life veers on it's own and sometimes you do it to yourself. Friends come and go and we all age, even when we don't notice.
- September will (hopefully) bring 1 year of making a step to better myself. Something I've not done in a very long time. (Maybe ever?) Something I finally proved to myself I could do.
- March marks 7 years of love and lessons. Uncertainty and teamwork. Learning about another person and about yourself. Laughing, crying, forgiving, and just...being.
- This month marks 4 years since finding a home and extended family. Making new friends and honoring the lives of others. Of praising and questioning, seeking and finding.Growing even when I'm not attending and being missed and encouraged. And February will be 3 years of doing a job I actually love. Serving in my own way, the people... I love. Learning more than I ever thought I would from clerical work- about people, about church and the business of church. About forgiveness and grace.
- In December, I'll celebrate the final year of my second decade in life. I'll celebrate my family and the life they have given me. I'll celebrate every moment that has brought me this far and cherish it. I'll think back on the people I have hurt and the people who have hurt me. I'll remember friends new and old and family both present and estranged. I'll remember teachers- in school and in life... smiles and kindness of strangers. Moments that have taken my breath away and those that made me stop in my tracks.
I serve an amazing God who is patient with me when I reject His timing and tell Him that I know better than what He has planned. He is understanding when I am angry with Him and question His motives and will. He does not remind me that His heart breaks when I reject Him and go astray but instead, that He is sympathetic and loves me for my faults and welcomes me with open arms, time and time again.
...He reminds me I am blessed and presents opportunities everyday for me to see His glory and magnificent splendor. Most of all, those venues are open for me to praise Him, in all things...
And here we are. A new year. Another year of starting over and remembrance. Another year of making plans- following through or breaking goals. Another year of lessons and life and love. Another year to make things right and better yourself, to live the way God intends and shine His light for others.
I am so blessed.
I am so glad I have reasons to recognize all the blessings.
I am in awe of my simple little life that is a huge deal to my God.
I am looking to the future with optimism and hope.
....it's going to be a great year.