Happy New Year!

I'm making 2023 a year of gratitude. Won't you join me?

Happy New Year!

I am finally resurfacing. It has been a tough year here! Short version of our year: We cleared out lots of furniture and possessions that found new owners. We down-sized from 3,200+ to 2,100 square feet. We sold our house in San Antonio and bought a brand new house in Weatherford. We moved all our belongings into the new house. AND, we are mostly unpacked.

That's a 50 word summation of 2022 for us. The longer version, I'll spare you the details, includes many ups and downs and twists and turns. Lots of moments when we thought our plan was not going to happen. Yet ending with everything falling into place nicely. In ways we could not have imagined.

As 2022 closes, I'm planning window coverings, which I am making myself, and thinking about what I would like to do in 2023.

More importantly, though, I've been contemplating the theme for this brand new year, 2023. My theme for 2023?

GRATITUDE

You see, it was gratitude that got me through 2022. Gratitude is a common topic and claims are made about the benefits to your mental state as well as your physical health. And I’ve found that to be true for me during 2022. The year brought many lessons for me and much to be grateful for.

What am I grateful for from the lessons that 2022 brought me?

• I'm grateful that, in spite of 2 hospitalization, we found solutions for health issues. Issues that nearly scuttled all our plans.

• Grateful for the two, rare doctors that listened to what was going on instead of making assumptions. It’s rare today for find doctors who don’t leap to conclusions based more upon the age or sex of a person rather than understanding what is really going on.

• I’m grateful for learning that the solution will always show up. As long as you're open to it. As long as you have the vision, but don't hold too tightly to the details of how it will work out.

• I’m grateful for all of the lessons that 2022 brought. And for learning the true meaning of the serenity prayer:

  "God, grant me the Serenity
  To accept the things I cannot change...
  Courage to change the things I can,
  And Wisdom to know the difference."

• Grateful for really learning what it means to accept that which I cannot change. There was a point in the process of selling and buying where things looked bleak. The contract on the new house was set to expire, as was our lock on a low interest rate. We thought we had a buyer and were planning the move. And then? The buyer backed out. I finally learned what it meant to fully accept what you cannot change. How counterproductive it would be to be stressed out about this issue.

• Instead, I let go. I let go of owning any outcome. I resolved to accept the outcome, whatever it may be. Realizing that I'm not in control, that is just an illusion. Knowing that things have a tendency to turn out the way they're supposed to, whether I'm stressed out about them or not. So why not just enjoy the ride?

• In the end, it all came together. What seemed impossible worked out perfectly. Just not in the way we had planned and not on our timeline.

And now?

• I'm grateful that I'm currently sitting in my own office. One part of our vision for this move was that I would have a room of my own. I'm sitting in that room now. Early morning. It's peaceful and quiet here. I can hear a train whistle off in the distance. And some days, I hear the hooting of owls.

• I'm grateful for living away from a big city. Where cows and deer are my neighbors. Where I see rolling hills and trees on my drive home.

• Grateful, too, for the sunsets you see when there's more countryside and fewer buildings.

• Grateful for the blue birds and blue jays and cardinals that visit our back yard.

• Grateful for nearby neighbors who put on lovely light displays like this one:

• And I'm especially grateful for each one of you that is reading this message.

Thinking ahead to 2023, I’m excited for what lies ahead. Making plans loosely because I know I'm not fully in control.

What's in those plans?

Cooking, of course. And perhaps some cooking shows or classes. Online classes. Would you come? What would you like to see in a cooking class?

Sewing, too. I have an ambitious plan of making all of the window coverings for this house.

Writing, too. I have plans to publish more and on some new topics.

And especially, exploring my new surroundings. Getting out and meeting new people.

I also plan to practice gratitude, every day. Out loud. Or more accurately, on Instagram. Follow along, if you like. You can even join in!

What are your plans for 2023? And, what are you grateful for?