A Grateful Heart part 2

With yesterday being Memorial Day, it seems more than appropriate to focus on freedoms and opportunities I have because of the sacrifices of so many people.

The Arlington National Cemetery is one of my favorite places to go when I am in that area. I have been a few times, and have enjoyed it immensely every time. There is a special spirit and reverence there, in honoring the many men and women who have sacrificed so much, including their own lives, for the freedoms and opportunities we enjoy, and honestly sometimes take for granted.

I am able to express my opinions, I am able to worship who and how I want, I am able to direct my own path, and I am able to choose where I live. There are so many things that we do each day that are automatic and normal, that to some are a dream or something they have to fight for each day.

There are many people throughout the world who have fought for those freedoms, who we have honored and have noted their names. There are others who are unknown to us, but who are known to our Heavenly Father. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier honors those who are not known to us, but known to Him. This is the place that I am especially drawn to and feel inspired to honor those who have sacrificed for country without the honors of men. I feel a responsibility to them, to be able to make their sacrifice worth it.

May we live our lives in ways to honor the sacrifices of many-those we know and those unknown.

A Grateful Heart

     As a part of a wellness challenge through work, I have accepted the challenge to focus at least 10 minutes a day for the next few weeks on focusing on my blessings. I figured accountability through posting on a blog would be good motivation to set that time aside and do it! I don't know if I will be perfect at it, but I am excited to try. Our guidelines included this nugget of wisdom:

Gratitude is thankful appreciation; it’s focusing on what we have rather than on what we lack. Developing gratitude is one of the best things we can do to improve our overall sense of well-being. It helps us to feel more alive, overcome adversity better, have less stress, be more generous and forgiving, build better relationships, and find greater joy in life.
     
Today, I am grateful for the gratitude I already have, and for the efforts I put into expressing it. It may sound strange, but I feel like my "Happiness is..." posts on Facebook are a way that I express gratitude. Some days it is ridiculously easy to share something that makes me happy, or something for which I am grateful. Other days, especially when I first started posting, it was something random that I sometimes had to take a long time to reach. 

The reason I started posting "Happiness is..." was because I was in a personal dark place, relying on others for validation, and having gone through one of the worst emotional experiences of my life had left me depleted and hurting. I was tired of feeling so down and stuck, so I decided to find something to be happy about (in others words, to find gratitude) in my posts. While I have not posted every day, and there are some exceptions to my postings, it has been wonderful to find gratitude over the last 6 or so years. 

I am grateful for the gratitude in my heart and expressed through my keyboard. I look forward to letting others know of my gratitude for them. 

Direction > Speed

I started this post over a year ago, and while some things have changed, there is still truth to the words, so enjoy!

It seems like when we need it the most, there are tender reminders (which sometimes need to be large wake-up calls, or figurative neon signs, or symbolic 2x4s) of some of the most important nuggets of truth that sustain us and bring hope. It amazes me how often these reminders come just before we really need that support.

Direction > Speed

I often feel like I am behind on my life's journey. I am not married (yet), I don't have kids (yet), I don't feel like I am necessarily doing my 'life's work' (yet), I don't feel like I have accomplished much (yet), and I often question if I am even close to the right path.

Direction > Speed

Through a variety of ways I have been reminded that the direction I am going, the positive things I am doing, the attitude I have, and the feelings in my heart are so much more important than when these 'milestones' happen in my life (if they do happen).

We often think that if our lives don't match the cookie cutter mold of what we think it should be, then we are doing things incorrectly, that we are being punished for something, or that we are off the path with little hope of finding the 'normal' way.

Direction > Speed

I have found that the times when I feel most un-cookie cutter-ish are the times that I am being prepared for something else in my life, or I am fulfilling some unseen plan that is greater than what I could have anticipated, or I am learning lessons that I need at that time in that way.

Blogging Renewal

I know, I know. I have been here before, with promises of keeping updated on my blogging, to give you insight into my thoughts and things, and yet, here we are again, almost a year later, and no blog posts. Sure, I have a list of things I want to blog about, but nothing actually posted to show for it. What keeps me from sitting down and simply typing? Too busy? An excuse, to be sure. If it is important enough, time will be made. Habit? (or lack thereof..) Absolutely. I know it takes 21 days to make (or break) a habit, but I don't know if I have 21 days of things to share. Needing an accountability buddy? YOU BET! Gym buddies, temple buddies, blog buddies...accountability is huge and knowing someone is going to be checking in on you is huge motivation to just do it! SO...maybe a reminder on my phone will be a good buddy? Let's see how it goes! And here we go!

The prayers of Little Ones

Between spending regular time with some of my nieces and nephew, and being a Primary (children's Sunday School) teacher at church, I get to hear a lot of prayers said by children, or Little Ones. Let me tell you, these prayers are some of the most sincere, genuine, and truthful prayers I have heard in my life. Sometimes they can also be the funniest...but still SO sincere, and I love it!

There are two prayers that are in my mind that I want to share.

The first one was from my niece, who is 6 years old. In her prayer, she prayed for me specifically, in the midst of her conversation with Heavenly father, to be happy and to have joy. Have you ever had a prayer resonate with such truth and hope and love? I felt loved to have her think of that for me. I felt hope that it was possible. I felt inspired to do things to make sure I was happy on my on terms, and not depending on others. It was a sweet reminder that we are meant to have joy and to BE happy. I have my ups and downs, like we all do, but it was so tender to me to have my niece pray for me to have things that I can have, as I choose them, and allow myself to enjoy life.

The other prayer that has stuck with me was said by one of my Primary kids. He is also 6. (It is a WISE age!) Anyway, one part of a prayer that he said was that he prayed, "for the gospel to be with us". It sounds poetic to me, that we may have the gospel with us. I know people pray for God's love, for direction, truth, guidance, counsel, inspiration, and so one, but it has stuck with me for us to have the gospel with us. We need to have the doctrines, truths, commandments WITH us, they become a part of who we are, they influence the choices we make, the things we do, and the people we become. As we have the gospel with us, we are blessed.

I am grateful for the prayers of Little Ones, and for the honest, humble purity that comes as they open their hearts and mouths.