It’s been an interesting week.
Monday was World Kindness Day.
November is World Gratitude Month.
So my intention was to write about finding gratitude in the everyday.
But then my husband was made redundant.
This week.
Just shy of six weeks before Christmas.
I couldn’t find anything kind in that, and I certainly didn’t feel grateful, quite the opposite in fact!
I have to be honest, I was scared (I still am a bit), and incredibly worried.
There were tears, lots of them. From me.
How the heck are we going to manage to meet the bills – food, utilities, insurance, medical?
What can we immediately cut, and do without?
But my husband has been incredible.
Strong, positive, optimistic, reassuring, supportive, brave, stoic.
In fact, he’s been amazing!
I am so grateful to him – for the person he is, and everything about him.
We’ve had lovely supportive comments and offers of help from friends and family.
I am so grateful to each and every one of them for reaching out to us.
We live in a beautiful part of the world, in an amazing country, on land we share with nature – abundant with birds and wildlife.
King Parrots that will eat out of our hands.
Possums that bring their offspring to our patio at night.
Okay, I know they only visit us for food – but I’m so grateful they do.
The night before my husband was made redundant I had no sleep.
There was a male Koala in a nearby gum tree, who was clearly fairly anxious to find a female.
If you’ve ever heard a male Koala’s mating call – you know it’ll keep you awake!
When I first moved to Australia it was a dream to have Koalas in ‘my back yard’.
I’m so gateful to be able to lie in bed at night and hear this, even if it means very little sleep!
I’m writing this sitting on our patio, looking at gum trees and listening to the birds: Rainbow Lorikeets, Noisy Miners, Magpie Larks, various honeyeaters, Crows with their Aussie drawl, Figbirds, Peacocks (yes, seriously), Butcherbirds… it’s stunning.
I feel very grateful to be able to see and hear all this.
I’m grateful we have access to some amazing doctors and medical care.
I’m so grateful we don’t live in a war-torn country, where children are dying.
I’m grateful to have access to clean, hot and cold water.
When you think about it, the list is endless.
So while this really hasn’t been the best week, I still have so much to be truly grateful for… and you can find surprising things in the everyday…
Ann 🙏