End of Year Gratitude Attitude

December 07, 2020

End of Year Gratitude Attitude

Merry Christmas Friends and Family. As we come to the last month of 2020, I am sure most if not all of you are ready for 2020 to be over. Truthfully, I feel like I am in the minority in this idea as 2020 has brought many blessings & celebrations for my family and me. The once-in-a-life-time trip that I was able to take with my sister, niece, and Leah to Paris in February was an amazing and unforgettable vacation that we won’t soon forget. The fact that this pandemic was just starting to spread globally (including France) and that God protected all 4 of us in the crowded museums, flights and airports is nothing less than a miracle, given the fact that I am an 2-time heart transplant recipient who is immunocompromised and my sister was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer at the time.

I am thankful for our healthy lifestyles & positive attitudes (as well as our “normal” sanitation practices in public places) that kept us all healthy during the trip & so far up until now as a write this blog post.

Our family has always appreciated where we lived, but even more so this year as the world, nation, states, counties & cities all seemed to be shutting down & shifting; yet our little neck of the woods basically remained unchanged. We continued our lives as we do each month, week, day, hour with a few minor inconveniences here & there. It’s probably the most inconvenient for Scott as he’s still out & about each week for work & he took on the grocery shopping after March as I dislike having to wait in line to get into a store to shop, especially during the heat of the summer (though once inside Trader Joe’s it is not as crowded-so I suppose there is a benefit to that).

Obviously since I have home schooled both kids from the start, we were never thrown off our game or schedules and school has rolled right on from a Freshman & 7^th grader last year, to a Sophomore & 8^th grader this year. They are both looking forward to their Christmas break so they can relax!

We had to shift and watch church online like so many people, but the benefit was we were able to have Scott’s folks join us each Sunday morning for church & breakfast until we returned to in-person gatherings.

2020 marked having hosted a transplanted heart for 30 years! It also marked celebrating 20 years of marriage to one of the best humans I know.

Most recently, 2020 added another niece to our family making my niece count-7 & nephews-3 so girls still rule! 😊 If my mom were alive today she’d have 9 grandchildren! If your thinking that my math doesn’t add up, well I also counted my nephew & nieces from Scott’s brothers.

So for me 2020 has been an a momentous year but not in the “usual” way that it is for the majority of the world & people I know. Perhaps it’s because I have peace with my life in Jesus Christ who helps guide me to lean toward the positive rather than the negative OF and IN circumstances happening to and around me.

I truly wish you all a VERY Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year that will shine the blessings in your life brighter than the circumstances surrounding you.

John 14:27

“Peace I leave you with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”

A few "highlights" since August 2020: