Happy Thursday friends. A little gratitude can go a long way sometimes. I’m often reminded of that sentiment because part of my job entails thanking people for a living. Over the course of the pandemic, I tried to look for at least one positive thing in each day. And, sometimes coming up with that one thing was difficult.
Luckily, I’m happy to be on the other side of this, with the light almost at the end of the tunnel. And, if you have been reading here over the last couple of months, you’ll know that 2021 hasn’t gone the smoothest (Our new house was damaged in the freeze – and my dog, Sawyer, passed away). But, it could certainly be worse.
I really felt the loss when Sawyer died, and it’s taken the last couple of months for me to really recollect myself and feel back to normal. He will be missed dearly, but I can look back fondly on the decade of wonderful memories we shared. And, with 2021 shaping up to be better in the second half, there is a lot to be thankful for. So today, I thought it would be fun to share three things that I’m most thankful for on this Thursday. What are you thankful for?
#1 Thankful for a Friday Off
I love my job, and I know I always talk about how busy it is, but I’m so lucky to be working in a job that I truly enjoy. During the pandemic, my workplace has been transparent with communication and flexible when necessary. And, lately, I’ve been accruing a ton of time off, which I haven’t used because….. that was taboo over the last year. I have a “use it or lose it” policy, so I’ve started scheduling some time off, and tomorrow is one of those days. I fully intend to get my eyebrows done, browse Barnes and Noble and just have a day where I’m not shackled to my computer, and I might go to lunch with a girlfriend if time allows – or I might just take my time running around town. Self care, ya’ll. More important than ever.
#2 Thankful for our Neighbors
After I wrap up work for the day, we’ve got some dinner plans for the evening. We loved our former neighbors when we lived in the Town House. They had a yellow lab named Maggie – so we bonded over that – and they were just down to earth people. We don’t see each other every day like we used to, but we do get to catch up every now and then. So, tonight, we are meeting them for dinner to catch up and to kick off the long weekend. That photo was taken at one of our first post-quarantine outings with our neighbors back in November.
#3 Thankful for my Church
I mentioned that Aaron and I recently started going back to our church services in person. And honestly, we should have done it a long time ago. There is just something about sitting in the sanctuary, and watching our pastor preach live. It’s a different experience than through a screen. Our pastor has been preaching on the Book of Revelation (you can listen to all of the message here) for the last couple of months. And, while it has a doom and gloom reputation, I can’t say that I’ve ever had a pastor spend as much time – or go as in depth as ours has done. It was difficult – and tough to hear at times, but I’m so thankful that he pushed us through. I tried several churches before Aaron and I chose this one as our home church. I never thought I’d be a member of such a large church.
But honestly, our pastor is the reason why we go. And today, he posted the above message on Facebook, which I needed to hear. Couldn’t we all use wisdom and leadership in each and every one of our days?
So, I’ll leave you with those three things – and I hope you can find three things that you are thankful for as well. Happy Friday-Eve!
