Where did 18 and 19 go? Zoom and a Tree
Living gratefully today, I appreciate electricity, running water, a roof over our heads, working heat, and food in the refrigerator.
When some of the more profound gratitudes are lost in the turmoil, I can still return to giving thanks for the basics, really they are luxuries, that my family and I have.
The gratitude hasn't stopped flowing, but it is changing courses in this uncharted time. In my distraction, I spaced off finishing off my list of 19 gratitudes to counter COVID-19.... officially anyway. So let's make it official today.
#18 ZOOM The video conferencing and online meeting app that has been used by many businesses in recent years, but is now allowing family and friends, church groups and recovery groups, and many more to stay connected across the miles and across the restrictions in place because of the global pandemic.
My six sisters and I gathered in our inaugural Zoom meeting yesterday and it worked! That was the first gratitude. We all figured it out and we all saw each other on screen from our homes in five different states. And it brought the grace and gratitude that only our shared sisterhood and that time "together" could bring us. In these trying times, it meant so much to me and it continues to fortify me today.
We missed you Mary Jo. It was the first time we had all been together since we had gathered for your memorial last June.
#19 A TREE OF OPTIMISM On our run Saturday morning, not only did we see encouraging words in chalk art on the trail, we saw this tree, 10 yards off the path. Someone must have just decorated it the previous day, as we had had wind and rain the day before that. Christmas tinsel and Easter eggs together, bringing color and sparkle to a tree still dormant.
When some of the more profound gratitudes are lost in the turmoil, I can still return to giving thanks for the basics, really they are luxuries, that my family and I have.
The gratitude hasn't stopped flowing, but it is changing courses in this uncharted time. In my distraction, I spaced off finishing off my list of 19 gratitudes to counter COVID-19.... officially anyway. So let's make it official today.
#18 ZOOM The video conferencing and online meeting app that has been used by many businesses in recent years, but is now allowing family and friends, church groups and recovery groups, and many more to stay connected across the miles and across the restrictions in place because of the global pandemic.
My six sisters and I gathered in our inaugural Zoom meeting yesterday and it worked! That was the first gratitude. We all figured it out and we all saw each other on screen from our homes in five different states. And it brought the grace and gratitude that only our shared sisterhood and that time "together" could bring us. In these trying times, it meant so much to me and it continues to fortify me today.
We missed you Mary Jo. It was the first time we had all been together since we had gathered for your memorial last June.
#19 A TREE OF OPTIMISM On our run Saturday morning, not only did we see encouraging words in chalk art on the trail, we saw this tree, 10 yards off the path. Someone must have just decorated it the previous day, as we had had wind and rain the day before that. Christmas tinsel and Easter eggs together, bringing color and sparkle to a tree still dormant.
Thank you to those who left this for the rest of us to appreciate and ponder. Normalcy has been stripped from our days. Fear is rampant around many corners and across many borders. And yet, there are bright spots. The generosity of humans giving to other humans in so many ways. The blue sky and sunshine and changing seasons...reliable Nature when so much has become unstable.
There you have it! Nineteen gratitudes to counter COVID-19. Don't stop there. Keep adding more to the flow. We need it now more than ever. Onward!
Living gratefully today, I am always grateful to start my day with your writing. Thank you Lisa - your focus on being present, mindful, positive, and hopeful is a gift to all of us.
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