I was sitting down and reflecting today about the many people I've met throughout my life. Some of them were of a close enough relationship to spend years with, some for literally only seconds. Some are still in touch and some have decided to cut ties for one reason or another. It all comes down to the fact that in one way or another, all of these faces helped shape me into the person I have become. I think of the numerous individuals in the family who have supported me throughout my years, and despite the fact that many of them have seen my human flaws they still remain supportive. I think of friends and neighbors who cheered me on and celebrated my achievements when I earned them, and for those of them who were wonderful enough to help me see my strengths and abilities when I couldn't see them myself.
This may sound weird at first, but hear me out: I'm thankful for those who weren't kind to me, or who put me into uncomfortable and difficult situations. They are certainly the ones I least like, but as I reflected about it today, I came to realize that such difficult situations became invaluable teachers. Through them, I learned something about myself. I learned that (surprise, surprise) I'm not perfect and still have lessons to learn. Yay! More discoveries! I have my limits emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually. It's through these experiences that I've learned for the most part how to deal with my feelings, which in many circumstances, can go deep, so that they become more productive than destructive. I could probably go on, but one of the most important lessons in the long run is developing the ability to sit back and try to understand a situation and consider all angles before jumping into conclusions about what happened. I don't know how many actually learn that lesson, but I find it quite valuable. I feel like I'm more compassionate and understanding, at least respectful if not anything else, because of these experiences.
I'm thankful for the smiles and hugs when I needed them. There are faces that took time to speak to me and get to know me, perhaps even to create some incredibly amazing memories. There are faces that reminded me of who I was when I'd forgotten, and faces that helped me bring out and see some amazing things about myself. Some I think of on and off in quiet times and whether or not our meeting had any positive impact, but I'm still left with the peace that I did the best I could at the moment. They're only memories to me now, but most of them are still alive and living in their corner of the world, and all I can hope for is that someone cares about them and they are watched over.
On a little bit of a side note, my recent project is outdoors, so I'm not really doing a lot of online things. We have a nice little collection of gladiolus bulbs, a collection of offspring from flowers that my grandma planted years ago. There are a few that come from ones we received from our church last year in addition to that, so we've got quite a collection. I'm setting up flower boxes to plant them in (starting today) and it will take quite a bit of work. It's time to start planting the bulbs, so I'm hoping to get those planted by the end of the week. It will be fun to see it happening. My grandma loved those flowers and I'll be happy to remember the wonderful influence she had on me as I watch them grow.
Keep it going and keep on flowing!
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| Gladiolus Flowers Offspring of Grandma's Bulbs |
