Having just returned from dinner with my daughter, her husband and two sons, I realize just how lucky I am to have family so close. My daughter lives about 5 minutes drive away and my son and his family about 40 minutes away.
Many of my friends have children on the other side of the world and see their children and grandchildren infrequently, and sometimes, hardly ever. In comparison, I see my family at least once each week. How lucky is that and how can I not add that to my list of things for which to be grateful?
And I have one friend with a daughter in London and a son in Tokyo. Apart from the fact that they see each other rarely, my friend has the added worry about his son being in Japan at this time. I cannot begin to understand how he is feeling at present and wonder how I would feel if I couldn’t speak to my children and their families just whenever I wanted to. We have heard that phone lines are either down or overloaded, travel is restricted and of course, for the son just living through each day must be awful.
As I am writing this, I have just received an email from my friend that his son and daughter in law are well. Apparently more than 4 million homes in Tokyo are without electricity. They are lucky in that they do have electricity but no gas and they cook on gas. But they are alive and well and that is what counts at this time.
Let’s get our attitude muscle tuned up and ready to go. Use it as regularly as you use your other muscles. Don’t let it atrophy. And when the current emergencies around the world have been controlled and life begins to get back to normal, let’s remember to give thanks for all whom we love, for their safety and well-being, and also for all the things in our lives for which we are truly grateful.
As I finish today’s blog Louis Armstrong is on the radio singing ‘What a Wonderful World’. Doesn’t that sum everything up for us?
Until tomorrow.
I choose how I will spend the rest of my life 