gratitude | | Page 3

3 Comments November 17, 2015 drworobec

I am not afraid for my life.

My children are getting an education.

I have access to healthcare and antibiotics and clean drinking water.

My home is safe.

I don’t worry about bombs or air raids or war sirens.

I have two cars and three bedrooms and big, beautiful trees.

I did not happen to be at a concert hall in Paris, or a funeral in Baghdad, or walking in a suburb of Beirut.

I was born in Canada.

So I am lucky.

I am certain that there are 36-year-old female Syrian refugees who do not have loving husbands and healthy children and dream jobs and safe, secure homes.

I am also certain that if the situations were reversed, if I just so happened to be born in Damascus instead of Provost, if I just so happened to be unlucky instead of quite possibly the luckiest ever, if I just so happened to be fleeing my home and my country, while clinging to my children and screaming, crying, shuddering in terror while trying to keep them safe and nourished and not witnessing human atrocities daily and seeing the very worst of the very worst, well then, I am quite certain that I would want her help.

So I am lucky.

And I will help. Because I am me, but I could’ve been her.

2 Comments June 30, 2015 drworobec

I’ve been struggling to find a topic to write about this week. Now and again, when writer’s block befalls me, I think about decreasing the frequency of my blog posts. As it stands, I only publish a new post once per week, which doesn’t sound like much- but when I want my posts to be meaningful, helpful, and from-the-heart, once a week takes a lot of mental energy. I don’t want to give it a half effort; I’m all in, or not at all.

WordPress tells me that I’ve now published 164 times; every Tuesday since May 2012. And I love it. I love to put my thoughts out there and I love to hear your feedback. I love to see the internet grab hold of what I’ve written and run with it. I love the shares and feedback and likes, and I especially love the “administrative approval” I have before comments can be published. I welcome dialogue and differing opinions, but it’s my blog and my rules and I won’t tolerate rudeness. Thank you very much ‘Yes, I Paint my Son’s Fingernails.’

But back to my original struggle. What to write about?

Well, the overwhelming feeling in my life right now is gratitude. So I will write about that.

As much of a planner as I am (after all, I am a Type A through and through), I’ve never been a person with a clear vision of my future. I wasn’t the little girl who dreamed about her wedding day, I went to University unsure of my next steps, and even now, I find it hard to see beyond the next couple of years. But what I do know is that I am ever-so-thankful for right now.

“Live in the moment,” they say. “Make every day count,” they say. I am and I do. A friend who recently moved into a new house told me, “I wake up every morning and literally say a thank-you because I’m so thankful to be living where I live.” That statement really stuck with me, because I do the same. Gratitude surrounds me when I wake up to smiling-kid faces or my 6am crew and it sticks with me through daily life, and daily work, and evenings with my husband. I’m grateful for my health and my family and my friends. And I’m oh-so-grateful for today.