Life is hard and not so fair! Others seem to have more than we have. Some are getting by with unhealthy eating and still don’t get sick. We feel stuck in a rut no matter how hard we work. Too many concerns piling up but so little resources to handle them. Yes, and such issues go on and get bigger.
Yet, there is meaning in the ugly. There is purpose in the unfair. There is a rainbow after the rain. A child is born after the discomforts of pregnancy and labor pains. After Good Friday comes Easter Sunday. There is beauty in the pain because the process allows us to look for the sunshine in the cloudy day.
We all have our share of things to rant and complain about. It seems that the human mind is programmed to see the imperfections and the disagreeable.
This makes gratefulness a purposeful act, a deliberate decision, a thoughtful musing.
Being a wife, mom, and counselor did not excuse me from difficulties. It was during those times that I looked for God’s meaning, purpose, and plans, considering not what I was lacking, but what I stood to gain.
There was one year that was particularly challenging year. My husband was managing a health issue that steered us towards the world of all-natural healthy eating. We had to say goodbye to all processed, man-made, and synthetic food that we were accustomed to eating and bid sugar farewell. I had to deal with menu planning, label reading, researching, and trouble-shooting my little ones please for cupcakes and cookies.
Managing this issue, while taking care of my children and my career, took a toll on me. Soon, I found myself in my own crisis. I deliberately paused, and took time to look at my resources, including all my abundance of blessings.
Here are some of the things that I am greatly grateful for.
Healthy living
I am so grateful for the health issue that allowed us to see beyond what we cannot have, and enjoy the food we can have. I told myself that I don’t want to be disheartened that my family cannot have steaks or desserts. I focused on the benefits of an all-natural diet to my family. I focused on the goodness it brings to my husband’s condition improving and my kids having less and less of allergies. I looked at the bigger picture, that our small sacrifices will allow us to lead longer, healthier lives.
Work
I am grateful that work gives me the opportunity to help families. I feel like the theories are being lived in my life. I challenge myself to walk my talk. While it is not fun to be in a crisis, my awareness of it keeps things in their proper perspective. I am happy to learn from my own lectures as well as the insights I share and hear from others. I may be a teacher, but I am a student of life, too!
My best friend-husband
Our marriage is not perfect! We are different in so many ways. But we both have our eyes set on the same parenting goals. We both want a simple life. We are both attuned to what the other needs. He is my best supporter and my kids’ best playmate.
We all have our Good Friday episodes. We all go through a desert experience. Yet, the promise is that Easter is coming and we will all reach the Promise Land.
Life is not easy! But it is in finding meaning and gratefulness that we are empowered to fulfill our God-given life purpose and mission.
This article first appeared in CARE, but has since been updated.