Very Grateful for:
God’s hugs through compassionate people
The sofa from my childhood, reclaimed and in my house
the car
finding something I thought was lost
remembering Silvia’s admonition to make progress “little by little”
Judy’s newsletter
computers
printers
slow healing from the combative meeting over the weekend
a new motto:
There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest… Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. ~Elie Wiesel

~Elie Wiesel

Very Grateful for:
God’s word
prayer
a morning walk with Ruby
this song by  Nichole Nordeman   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KsaaZsFtkE
getting through a difficult family meeting
Amelia’s call at just the right time
Tedra’s support
Pam support and prayers
And always…Garrett’s wise words

Whatever it is you’re seeking won’t come in the form you’re expecting. ~Haruki Murakami

Very Grateful for:
God’s blessings
A supportive friend like Garrett
clean water
air conditioning
ceiling fans
pillows
a refrigerator
ice cubes
electric lights
Some people care too much. I think it’s called love. ~A.A. Milne

Very Grateful for:

God’s lessons
the safe arrival of new freshmen and their families to campus
passing a student in the hall and hearing him whistling a hymn called “It Is Well”
the Serenity Prayer
3 days in a row walking with Ruby
Silvia and her encouragement
my fajita soup
making progress on accepting things I cannot change
making progress on being pleasant and happy in spite of disappointing circumstances

I teach frowning at things. ~Professor Francis O’Gorman in How Academe Breeds Anxiety  http://www.chroniclecareers.com/article/How-Academe-Breeds-Anxiety/231441/

Very Grateful for:

God’s angels on the road and here in town
Safety during our 8-state road trip to get to Virginia
Not getting lost-amazing!
Amelia, getting settled in her new place in Virginia
The sharp plum-colored sunrise sky
The bee whisperer who got rid of the bees at my front porch
Julio, who plowed up the Frisbee-sized bee hive
That none of us were stung by all those bees
The reminder that if we think we are insignificant it is helpful to remember the effects and influence of the tiny bee

Maybe that’s what we look for in the people we love, the spark of unhappiness we think we know how to extinguish. ~Tom Perrotta

Very Grateful for:
-God’s parental employment plan—working ourselves out of a job
-eavesdropping on Amelia’s phone calls to the movers and her firm negotiating stance
-learning to be in the background
-this song: At Peace: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MMWU99Q/ref=dm_ws_tlw_trk7 -and this song: https://youtu.be/1_xwnb3cymc
-ice water to give to the movers
-the memory of Amelia labeling her boxes
-printers for map covering the 8 states on our road trip
-remembering to pack the Kleenex for my “allergies” (brought on a rise in separation pollen count)

We improve ourselves by victory over our self. There must be contests, and you must win. ~Edward Gibbon, 1787, Author, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

Very Grateful for:

God’s patience for my pursuits

yoga from my airplane seat while we waited for an hour on the tarmac

passing my Capstone thesis

finally exhaling on the 2 month, 50-page process

confronting the fear of not passing, accepting the fear, and resolving to accept whatever the outcome would be

hearing Amelia’s squeal of delight when I gave her the good news

taking this week to “deprogram” from academic writing

Chilaquiles

“the disease of ‘not enough’ is cured when you give thanks for more than enough grace”  ~Ann Voskamp

Very Grateful for

Fathers

a long road of obedience in the same direction

patience to let everyone talk (his patience, not mine!)

honor and respect

hearing the words “we are all we need”

and receiving blessings

recognizing blessings as they are received

and a welcomed, pleasant surprise

in the mint-infused air of Sunday

To him the stars seemed like so many musical notes affixed to the sky, just waiting for somebody to unfasten them. ~Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis

Very Grateful for:

God’s acceptance of what we call our failures

the guys who fixed the air conditioner by ingenuity and something they call “southern engineering”

wild, sockeye salmon

and blueberries grown in Texas

Dad’s blue eyes

knowing that only prayer can “fix” some things

the quiet of the office in summer

time to reduce the email backlog

God does not see us as failures

“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”  ~Henry Ford

Very Grateful for

God’s fierce love

a long walk to the coffee stand with Amelia and Ruby

walking which gives me time to listen

time to take my bike to be fixed

the guy who will fix it

Amelia, saying “yes” to going flea-marketing (I’ve been asking her to go for years)

our first flea market trip

finding out that Amelia likes darker woods and teal blue

seeing Amelia smile the smile of possibility

“At the moments when you think you’re at your weakest, you’re inspiring someone around you to be stronger.” ~Kori Cioca, Peace is Loud, U.S. Coast Guard, Advocate