Christmas is coming, and two competing forces are at play: the hustle and bustle of the season, and the need to slow down, focus, and reflect on joy and love. As the Grinch learned, the details don't matter so much as the feelings. Taking time to think about what I am thankful for helps keep my life balanced, and this week, I am thankful for:
1. Getting my piano tuned. It had been too long. I learned something from the tuner. He said that years ago, pianos would be tuned to a different standard than is used today. I know that past tuners have told me that they would not raise the pitch on my piano, and would just tune it to itself. This tuner did take the time to raise the pitch. No strings broke. He will return in 6 months to tune it again, and hopefully then we can go to a once-a-year tuning.
2. Carollers appeared on our doorstep.
3. I went to my first book club meeting here. (Though I had thought of joining the library's book club, I realized that their meeting schedule didn't work well for me. I recently found a neighborhood book club that works better.) It was nice to visit and get to know my neighbors better.
4. Our church Christmas party is this weekend. Making friends takes time, and I welcome opportunities to get to know people.
5. Guest posts on my blog. This past week, Mimi wrote about her involvement with rEcess. If you haven't read the post, you can find it here.
6. Opportunities to serve. I saw a Facebook post from a friend who mentioned in passing that she wasn't feeling well. I just happened to have sampled (and purchased) at Costco some ginger beer (a non-alcoholic drink, of course, like root beer) that was exceptionally tasty. I quickly texted her to ask if she'd like some, and was able to take some to her. Now I know why I was so determined to make that impulse buy!
7. The anticipation of seeing family members over the next few weeks, and the knowledge that those I won't see will be able to spend time with the other side of their families.
8. Fed Ex. After entering in the weight and dimensions of packages I needed to send, on the USPS and UPS websites, I was getting really concerned about the cost. Fortunately, I also tried the FedEx site, and was very pleased. I was able to send everything for less than it would have sent me to send only one of the packages with another carrier. As an added bonus, there was NO LINE at the FedEx office--and there was a coupon for additional savings!
9. Goo Goo Dogs, where I take Drexel for his monthly bath and nail trim. Every time I take him there, he is excited to be there, and the workers are equally excited to see him. The front desk clerk told me that the groomer told him this week that Drexel is his favorite. (Sorry, everyone else.) While they might say that to everyone, I am biased, and I believe them! :-) Drexel really is a good dog.
10. John. We have an Amazon Echo, and when I went to review my to-do list on the Alexa app, I was puzzled by "Two p.m. no." Thanks to John's brilliant mind (and memory), he was able to remind me that I needed to call someone to "tune piano." Also this week, Facebook informed me that John and I were celebrating our 10-year" friendversary." I can hardly believe that we've been using Facebook for almost 1/3 of our marriage. Why, I remember the first computer we bought that could connect to (dial-up) internet! (And when did I start sounding old?!) In any case, there's no one I would rather grow old with than John. :-)
The Ten Things of Thankful blog hop will be taking December 21 and 28th off, but will return again on January 4th. May you each have a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
Inlinkz Link Party
I love how you find gratitude in your daily life!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteBook club sounds like fun, a great way to sharpen the mind while making friends. "Two pm no" is why i won't be abandoning pen and paper for making noted to myself very soon!
ReplyDeleteI was certainly glad John was able to decipher that note!
DeleteStill like the yellow-lined pads (but, in a nod to the 21st century, I use the calendar in my email/phone instead of the lesson plan (with silver spiral binder) that I used for too long to remember.
ReplyDeleteWe took Una to a groomer a couple of years ago. Being so long-haired, we were totally falling behind with groomer and mat-maintenance. Unfortunately, when I took her back, she was shaking so much and looking at me with such a 'please don't leave me here' that I paid the cancellation fee and we ran out of the place... (it was worth the money for the look on her face lol)
Trying to establish better brushing schedule.
(Had trouble with the link up code. It informed me that (my) site was a problem but chose not to indicate the nature of the problem. So I'll get all dial-up on this thing and make the rounds 'from here'.)
I like to write paper notes, too, but am finding Alexa to be convenient, though a bit puzzling at times.
DeleteWe once had a Samoyed, so I understand the difficulty of trying to keep a dog mat-free. Even though Drexel's fur isn't long, he is a shedding machine, and I really should establish a better brushing routine for him, too.
Sorry about the link-up code. I'll try to figure it out before the next TToT.