Blessings of the Year

I usually do a bucket list for what is to come every summer. This year, on my birthday, I'm counting my blessings from the past one in part to answer the question from my husband, "What does it feel like to be 54?" Yes, being married to a writer means every question gets an essay answer.  He knows this, and mercifully, he loves me in spite of it. 

By rights we should hate the year 2020, because there has been much suffering, much turmoil, and many sins and sores and long standing injustices exposed.  Yet it is also a year of great blessing, because the many sins and sores and long standing injustices have been exposed, and thus can begin to be addressed and with our cooperation with Divine grace, healed.

I am grateful for all the stollen time with my family, time that would not exist if we'd gone about business as usual.  While I want the pandemic cured and over, I do not want the return to ordinary time, where we don't think we need to spend time with each other. I don't want the excuse that business allows, where we spend time doing the unneccesary things don't eat together or even if we do, we're not present. 

I am grateful for the jobs some of my family have been able to acquire, and for the degrees some of them attained. I'm proud of all of them for their work and accomplishments. None of these feats are easy, none a given, and all should be properly celebrated. 

I am grateful for everyone that is still healthy, despite the risks of a world wide illness we do not know how to stop, only treat.

I am grateful for answered prayers, and that God keeps answering my prayers even when I'm not immediately grateful even when I know a prayer has been answered.  He knows I'm a needy greedy and self indulgent soul and somehow, He still answers, He still loves.  Very grateful to be in His heart.

My life has been one big blessing.  What is it like to be fifty-four? It's a blessing, just more of it.