It's been a month after Thanksgiving and you maybe wondering why this blog is a month late. Well, it is during the holiday season that I feel most thankful; it is this time of the year that I slow down and gather my thoughts over the "gifts" I receive every year. I count them every night though, before I go to sleep instead of counting sheep.
I am thankful for my life and this beautiful world we live in. If we would just "stop, look and listen", we would see that our world is a kaleidoscope of color and drama. It stimulates our five senses and sharpens our intuition, our sixth sense. I am happy that now I have time to cultivate a few plants and "smell the flowers", my small way of bonding with nature.
The BIG blessing that we received this year, the most unexpected and pleasantly surprising is the birth of our grandson. After praying and hoping, our family's wish have been granted, you can't imagine our joy and excitement!
"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
William Shakespeare, in Hamlet
These immortal words were written almost four hundred years ago, spoken by Hamlet after he saw his father's ghost in the castle hallway. It is believed that he was talking about the mysteries of life and death.
Why in heaven's name would I invoke Hamlet here, especially when I'm talking about being grateful? Well, speaking of life's mysteries, who would have dreamed that I can now talk or send a message to someone, anywhere in the world by just tapping a few buttons on a gadget as small as 2x3 inches or even as small as a watch? I wouldn't have believed it then, if someone told me during my childhood; at a time when the only means of communication available was through telegraph, telephone available only in strategic cities and sending letters via the postal system. I would have thought that impossible.
Then afterwards, in more recent years, what I thought to be improvable then, which is possible now, was when I watched with amazement Michael Jay Fox used his credit card to pay for his cab fare in the movie Back to the Future.
Isn't it wonderful to be living in this digital age when communication is done in a heartbeat? It makes a "small world after all". Within my family, there is no other time that we bond as often; two of our children live oceans apart from us, but we seem to be talking almost everyday, as if they just live around the corner. I even know what my two daughters' families had for lunch or dinner, complete with pictures.
Through FaceTime and in pictures e-mailed weekly, (which I always save in Dropbox), we observe my grandson's progress as he grows into a little boy. I am also delighted every time my 9-year-old granddaughter says goodnight by sending me through WhatsApp cute little good nite pictures.
Thanks to Wattpad, Kobo, and iBooks, I am enjoying my favorite past time again, reading as much novels as I want; and through blogspot.com, where I publish my blog, I found an outlet for self-expression.
Digital communication aside, I am most happy that nowadays, my husband and I developed a good rhythm, no words necessary; never did we understand each other better than now; and learn to accept each other's idiosyncrasies. Is it because we are more relax now, there is no more pressure from work; or is it because we just mellowed with age? Whatever the reason, our bond is stronger now thus together, we are more apt to face life's challenges. We also exercise together and enjoy our "happy hour" at Starbucks, content and comfortable in companionable silence as we sip our fraps and read the newspaper or a magazine, oblivious of the noise around us.
I am thankful for my wealth of health, including that of my entire family. At my age, I thank God that I am still equipped with more youthful energy, vitality and optimism. Most people our age take a lot of maintenance medicine, I am lucky that I only take multi-vitamins. Earlier on at work, I used to take headache medicine almost everyday. Having my spinal column aligned by our chiropractor is also a blessing for my body heals itself to function properly.
I am thankful that our children are married to responsible, no-nonsense spouses, living sensible lives and are dedicated and faithful to their jobs, a good thing to be at a time when jobs are hard to come by. Now that I see how they all turned out, I have no qualms that they will be fine for life.
I am happy that I've reconnected with friends and relatives in my hometown. After high school, I was pre-occupied with college then later on I focused on career, marriage and raising children that I haven't looked back. Nowadays however, we are catching up and re-acquainting on Facebook. Some are inviting me to their parties, old friends who now live abroad are visiting and/or planning to meet up when they come home.
This year I am excited that my younger daughter is spending Christmas with us along with her husband. After she left to work abroad nine years ago; for one reason or another, she was unable to make it for Christmas.
I can go on and on and this blog would be very long if I mention all my blessings this year; suffice it to say that there are a lot to be thankful for and that life is really wonderful.
What about you, what are you thankful for?
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