Thursday, May 20, 2010

In Which I Count My Blessings

Jeremy and I managed to concrete in some more fence posts today while Connor was in school.  We didn't get anything else done outside, though, because the weather went totally haywire.  We had sun, rain, sleet and then more sun and then hail and then rain and more sun again.  It was like the weather was running through a test pattern or something.  It was rather bizarre.

As I was watching the weather out the garden window in our kitchen today, I was struck again by just how lucky I am.  Jeremy and I celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary on Wednesday.  That same day we received a ten minute video in the mail of our beautiful little girl who awaits us in Thailand.  Connor had a quiet day, and he was in a lovely mood for the vast majority of it.  I spent a good portion of the day curled up by the fireplace with a cat on either side of me. 

Someone will tell me, every once in a while, that they could never do what I do.  It's pretty silly, to my mind, because it implies that what I do every day is somehow really really hard and that I must be miserable but holding up under the strain the best I can.  It's days like this, when I watch my son laugh with delight at the hail pounding down outside while Jeremy moves around the kitchen making his coffee and whistling snippets from Bach, that make me realize just how wonderful my everyday existence really is.  There are plenty of people who could do what I do, and I'm still not sure how I managed to be the lucky one who gets to live my life each day.

What more could I ask for? 

Other than a phone call from the neurology department, (if I don't hear from them by tomorrow afternoon I'll give them a ring) I can't think of much. 

~Jess

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jess,
You're probably right, others could do what you do on a daily basis. What makes you so special is the attitude with which you do it. Most people would be bemoaning why this happened to them; while you, on the other hand, only see the blessings you've been given. In MY book, that makes you an extraordinary person; and while I agree with you that you have been blessed, I think Jeremy and Connor have been blessed as much or more for having you in their lives.
P. Finley (Duncanville)

Herding Grasshoppers said...

Happy Anniversary!

Laughing boy, husband puttering in the kitchen, fireplace, reading... sounds like bliss to me :D

And I second the praise for your attitude.

Julie

Anonymous said...

"I could never do what you do..."

That always cracks me up. I'm always tempted to ask them what they mean. "So if you had a kid with special needs you wouldn't, what? Feed him? Love him? Deal with the issues that arise?" Of course they would! You never know what you're capable of until you're in that situation. Besides, we're the lucky ones. You've got the cutest boy on the West Coast and I've got the cutest one on the East.

PS: I didn't just pass my exam...I CRUSHED it!! :)

-J O'C

Geetha Srinivasan said...

Jess, first of all thank you for all these posts you take the time to write. Before i decide to write a post on my blog, almost every night i first read blogs like yours to learn to be more stronger for myself and my son.
And yes even i feel blessed everyday for the most precious gift, my son and the most remarkable man in my life, my husband.

xraevision said...

Yes, Jess, it's your attitude and sense of humor that is so refreshing. It hasn't occurred to me that I should feel sorry for you or that I couldn't do what you do because as parents, of course, we simply do what we need to do.

Last week, a woman looked at my son's hearing aids, made an exaggerated sad face and said, "Poor little guy!" I was so stunned that I couldn't respond! Poor little guy? I thought. My son has the Best Live Ever and is generally happy, despite his deafness and his other not so obvious issues.

Rebekah said...

I've been reading your blog for some time (first time commenting - I think?) and your attitude toward life is beautiful. You seem to be more than a glass is half-full kind of person, rather your glass runneth over! I appreciate your positive, upbeat, humorous, grateful view of life. I've always been a glass half-empty kind of gal (or, as my husband put it one time, glass-half-empty-smashed-on-the-floor-shards-everywhere...said with love and also totally true). I view myself as a realist, not a pessimist, but in the process, I forget to notice and APPRECIATE all the lovely moments. So...thank you.

 
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