My Happy Place

Yesterday I was looking through some photo's that we took at the weekend and this one really lifted my spirits.  Our life of late hasn't been without it's ups and downs, stresses and strains.  We have been hurt and disappointed with some personal and family issues and, for a while, these took their toll and they still do if I allow myself to dwell.  However, I looked at this picture and some others we took and I suddenly felt very grateful and lucky.  There are those who don't agree with how we choose to live our lives, and those who refuse to try and understand.  They can be hurtful.  But equally there are those who love us for who we are, and accept us, they understand and support us. They do not look at what we can give them, they especially don't expect us to give them what we don't have.  For these people in our lives I am grateful.  I am also now at peace with where we are, happy that we made the right choice and more determined to enjoy it all.  And with this right at your backyard gate...well who wouldn't count themselves lucky?

I love this little Northern Ontario Township!

Thankful For Simple Pleasures

I've got that New year feeling!  You know, the one that feels all happy and optimistic, the feeling that this year is going to be a good year.  All the little 'hiccups' of 2010 are going to sort themselves out.  There have been times when I thought I had lost my faith, times when it felt just too difficult to remain positive in the face of all the little things that seemed to go wrong one after another.  This blog was always intended to share life's pleasures and I have always tried to steer well clear of anything negative or sad here even though sometimes that was hard, sometimes I just felt like saying this is crap and I need a hug!  A friend of mine recently told me that she started to keep a little book in which she wrote down all the things she was grateful for that day, every night.  This, she said, kept her on track and positive and she firmly believes that this is what turned her life around.  Mindfulness and positive thinking. 

So anyhow I really want to get back to the essence of Life's Simple Pleasures and to that end here's what I intend to do: from today I am going to post at least three things that I am grateful for each day, every night for the whole month of January, just to see how it feels!  If you would like to join in simply do a daily post on your blog or, if you prefer, add them to the comments on here!  So here goes:

1. Last night there was a snow storm and we woke up to lots of lovely fresh white snow!
2. We took the trail to Gog Lake.
3. The sun shone and the sky was bright blue
4. The air was crisp and clean and sparkled like glitter
5. My son was on facebook and he looks and sounds so happy.  That makes me just SO happy too!
6. Living with Lovely Man, without him I just wouldn't be where I am today.
7. Receiving an e-mail from the Editor of The Echo saying my new column is "Great"!

 Wow!  It was hard to stop at three!!!!