sometimes at the end of the day i am so tired that i neglect to count my blessings. sometimes when i wake up in the morning and my feet hit the floor running i neglect to count my blessings. sometimes as i am at work and all the phones are ringing, and children are sick and crying, and the copier wont copy, and someone needs ice or a band aide and i am doing the gotta go to the bathroom now dance i forget to count my blessings. sometimes as i dash from one job straight into the next and then rush to drop one child off at a field for practice, stop and pick up another child from the gym, spend a few minutes sweeping a floor or taking out the trash, then rush back down to the ball fields yet again to drop off and pick up i forget to count my blessings. when i go home to a dirty kitchen and laundry to wash, fold and put away, supper to cook, homework ranging from the elementary to the high school level, a husband that needs attention, clothes to iron, floors to sweep, baths to take, dogs to feed, farm chores to do and decent bedtime hours to observe i forget to count my blessings.
but if in the midst of the chaos that is my life - raising 10 kids, working two full time jobs, a husband, a farm, dogs, and chickens, church events, sporting events, social events, school events - if i would just remember to stop and breathe and count my blessings i know that i would rediscover that it really is the small things like an unexpected hug or smile. a student bringing in a small treat just because. a husband that got up and made the coffee that morning. a teenage son that leans in to kiss my cheek and tell me goodbye even tho his buddies are present and watching. a fistful of flowers and grass stuffed overflowing into a vase on the kitchen table when i get home. the sharing of another's burden to lighten their load a bit. a 5th grader who comes up to my office just to say hello in the middle of the day. the excited waves in the cafeteria from my elementary kids and their friends. a friend that feels safe pouring out her heartache to me. my adult children coming home for the holidays. an unexpected cup of coffee brought by a friend to cheer my day. a simple thank you. a compliment. a shared laugh. its the small maybe not so obvious blessings that really change the day. i must remember to remember to count the little, the big, the obvious, the obtuse, and especially those in disguise blessings in my life.
and i have SO MANY blessings in my life. countless. wonderful. incredible. empowering. beautiful. hilarious. humbling. a multitude. everyday if i stopped long enough to count them - which i never seem to have the time to do - i could spend all day counting and get nothing else done!
so i resolve to live each day if not actively counting my blessings at least being consciously grateful for them.all the things that make my days crazy, unique and chaotic - i will count them as blessings. and thank God for them ALL!
