GREETINGS FROM COLORADO

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Of all the journeys I’ve been on in my life, this year was an adventure of epic proportions.  We found out what the new normal looks like when the pandemic hit and brought the entire globe to its knees.  Then an unprecedented and long overdue awareness of Black Lives Matter swept through America.  Massive wildfires threatened our beautiful state of Colorado and finally, the presidential election with all its drama is over.  (Well, maybe not the drama…) 

A sassy farewell to 2020…..

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Through it all, we managed to navigate the turbulent waters of grief after losing my son at the end of 2019.  Honestly, there were times when those crashing, relentless waves felt like tsunamis threatening to engulf me and take me down for good. But somehow, when I managed to come up for air, my Heavenly Father, sweet family and treasured friends were right there to hold my exhausted heart and hug the tears away…at least until the next wave. 

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It’s a mystery to me how sorrow and gratitude can be mixed together in this cocktail of grief.  How precious to me are the thoughts of my beautiful boy, bringing so many smiles even through my tears. Taking a daily concoction of gratitude with a chaser of humor has been my drug of choice this last year.  “Choice” being the key word, because certainly there are days when I don’t FEEL thankful, much less humorous.

Thanksgiving Day has come and gone, but the approaching Christmas season reminds me that there really is no “season” for gratitude.  Every day of the year is the time for gratitude – balm for the troubled soul.  We find it easy be thankful for the big things in life such as our family and friends, our health and prosperity.  But do we offer up a silent prayer of thanks when our feet hit the ground in the morning for each breath that enters our body, each step we take without pain, each small token of love we receive?  I know I forget the blessings in the small, simple gifts I take for granted. 

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So, for today, in this moment, I offer up a sacrifice of gratitude, because through all the ugly there are moments of beauty.  God has promised not an easy, suffer-free life, but He has promised His Presence. 

Emmanuel – God With Us. 

With us through the dark nights, lonely tears, confusing disappointments.  With us in the eyes of our loved ones, with us in the kindness of a stranger, with us in the dim twilight before moonrise and the glorious colors of the brand-new-day sunrise.

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With us, in us, through us. 

I have seen it throughout my life and I expect to see it again…and again.

Merry Christmas… every day.

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