Once the hoovering was done, we went upstairs for bathtime. Little Miss Independent is not a tactile girl, but after her bath, she loves to be wrapped up in her towel on my lap and to have me sing to her. This evening at her request I sang "I'm Special", (a Graham Kendrick classic from my childhood) and she joined in, but in a silly, growly voice that had us both laughing, and then Laurie climbed up too, and my heart just felt really full.
I recently found an app called HappyFeed, which reminds me every day to make a note of three things I'm thankful for. Now in the interest of complete honesty, I've already had days when three separate things felt like a push. But actually, more often my struggle is to narrow it down to just three!
I am so blessed. There are so many wonderful people and great things in my life. I tend to blog in times of crisis, or at least of stress, and I really hope this post doesn't sound saccharine or braggy in comparison. It just felt right to share something a bit different, but (I promise) still authentic.
Because regardless of all the rubbish that goes on, at a personal level and in the bigger picture of our world, there is still so much good. So much beauty. So much cause for joy. And if we let the rubbish blot out all the beauty, then the rubbish wins (and that's even rubbish-er).
"Count your blessings" is one of those phrases that can be mis-used. It can be an effective way to shut down someone who needs to talk about negative stuff they're dealing with, and can be as cutting as simply saying "stop whining". And I know you probably already know this (and I do too but I seem to forget, so here's a little reminder) but actually, counting our blessings, or if you like - naming our blessings - is a powerful act.
For such a simple exercise, it really packs a punch (at least it does for me!) It increases my wellbeing, it's an encouragement to look back on when things are rough, and it brings me near to God. He knows what we need, and he tells us to fill our minds with things that are "true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse." (Philippians 4:8)
And that just makes sense to me. It's like that Roald Dahl quote from The Twits:
“A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.”
In other words, the things we choose to think about, to dwell on, impact us in significant ways. Today thankfulness and joy have been easy to come by, but I think that might partly be because I have been training myself to look for the good, to search for things to be thankful for, to notice the small moments of beauty that pop up all over the place but can so easily slip away unattended.
Today I am glad. And I am thankful. But next time it's hard to be glad and thankful, still I will be obedient to God (and to Roald Dahl) and I will search for the best and the beautiful, the praise-worthy and the good. I hope you will, too.
(Apologies to any of my fellow Palace-supporting friends who opened this thinking it might be something to do with football. It just seemed like an apt title!)
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