It has been a 15 hour day. There have been a number of long days lately. These days are a by-product of our business being blessed this year. No complaints. In this moment I am taking time to pause…pausing to look at this year and this past week. It has been an extraordinary year in many ways. Extraordinary in the sense of some very positive things happening in my business life and my personal life, and extraordinary in the amount of change and shift I have encountered. It is this moment that I feel blessed and highly favored (thank you Craig). Blessed by my 94 year-old father’s continued presence in my life. Blessed by my granddaughter’s presence. Blessed to have a life mate who is extraordinary in her own right/light. Blessed by an extraordinary family and friends. Blessed by God’s love. This is a time of gratitude. Out of a heart of gratitude comes the ability to experience ‘light’ in our life and understand in some intimate way what being alive really means.
Gratitude is what informs our attitude and allows us a sense of hope and the ability to appreciate where we have been, where we are going, but most of all, where we are. In this moment, what can you see that is going well? Are you able to see life, your life, as a special place to be? Sometimes that is hard. I am sad to know that in this season of ‘wonder’ and ‘hope’ there are more suicides than at any time of the year. This means that in the midst of our gratitude there are others experiencing despair.
My response to despair is to encourage others to find, to see, to experience, the piece of their life that that has light, hope, something to say ‘thank you’ for. I have spent a lot of time around the aged and frail, and others who, when you look at the surface, would seem to have great difficulty finding that ‘light’ and being able to be thankful. Yet, when I go beyond the ‘surface’ and engage them in conversation I find that many can smile, can remember, can find the energy that gives them some light and some hope. Then there are others who on the surface seem to have great ‘abundance,’ yet struggle to find the gratitude that would allow them to experience life as it was meant to be – full of love, opportunity, and the presence and encouragement of others.
So what does this holiday season look like for you? Is it full of energy, light and a sense of gratitude for what you have been given, experienced, and the people in your life? Or is there darkness that requires some encouragement to shed?
My very best moments are because of gratitude and out of that gratitude to meet others where they are and encourage them to find their ‘light,’ their ‘purpose.’ My faith tradition is about ‘birth’ and ‘hope’ this time of year. My wish for you is that your holiday and your new year will be full of blessings, and that you will share your ‘light’ with the world. We need it!
To a better you…