THANKFUL FRIDAY
Cindy Maddera
"Spring!"
Gratitude comes with the sun today. The other day I stepped outside and felt a warmth in the wind and could smell the sweetness of Spring. Up to then the wind still blew cold. It would look warm outside. The sun would be bright and the sky would be a clear blue, but you'd step outside and be hit in the face with a blast of cold air. Sometime in the middle of the week, that all changed. I have ridden the scooter, done yoga on a rooftop and taken my first morning coffee walk of the year. I pulled out the dead mums leftover from the Fall and replaced them with a bright orange pocketbook plant and some purple things I don't remember the name of. It is bliss and I am thankful for the warmth that is returning to my bones. It is the same every year. I bloom along side the tulips.
This Spring, I feel slightly overwhelmed. I am overwhelmed with the usual things that need to be done. We are late getting seeds in the ground. I have a presentation for work. The dog is in desperate need for a grooming. I am leaving for a conference in a few weeks and I feel unprepared. They are just the usual daily life things. We all have them. Today I choose to be overwhelmed with gratitude. So many of you have donated to my AIDS Walk fundraising page. Every year I ask for donations and every year you guys step up for no other reason than your giant generous hearts. You overwhelm me with your kindness. And speaking of kindness, a box arrived on my doorstep containing one Janku Rey doll. I have no idea who sent it. I posted a picture on social media and as of writing this, I still have not figured out who to thank. No one is fessing up to sending it. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for this random act. Those usual daily life things have easily taken a back seat to my heart full of gratitude.
I am thankful for eggs. We have so many eggs in our fridge right now. Some of them will be given to the nice couple who gave us a bale of straw and a package of pine chips. I am thankful that we have had a whole two weeks without having to deal with a live or dead thing that Albus has brought in through the pet door. It has been thirteen days with out incident. Scratch that. It has been zero days without incident. I pried a dead rabbit out of Josephine's mouth this morning. She took it from the cat. I am thankful for a clean house. I am thankful for lentils. I am thankful for all the bright colors that are showing up every where. And well, you know? I am thankful for you.
Here's to a weekend of sunshine and a very very Thankful Friday!