Big Blessings in Small Packages

[Alustriel]

    This has been a hard year, not only for my family but many others as well.  The economy sucks, and people have lost alot because of it . It's sad, scary, and very stressful.  Marriages have broken up, people have gotten depressed, some have even lost their lives because it was too much to bare. 

   I have watched so many people that I know lose things. Things they have worked hard for, their dreams, their accomplishments Their jobs.  It's heartbreaking and very humbling.  It can happen to any of us at anytime.

   I have been at the point where we have lost everything we own and had to start over but  we did it and my family was there the whole way.  It was very hard and even embarrassing. People made you feel sometimes like you should be ashamed. I never let them get to me, you can't or you'll fall even further into the hole.

 Through all of  that  I  realized the most important things in my life are the ones I love and the little things that no amount of money can buy.

 I have been blessed with the fact that my husband has a job and although it has been far from easy and a very long stressful road we have managed to make ends meet. Even living payday to payday.   Of course there were many of times there was no money left  after a payday and no food in the house but we managed and we still are.

 With the holidays approaching I sit here and ponder on the last year of our lives and realize yeah, we have struggled, we have fought our way through but we have made it and been blessed many times along the way.  I have realized that although life has thrown us a curve ball and we had a few strikes, we have managed to hit it anyway and run the bases to home.

 For starters we are all still together and going strong. We have 3 beautiful children who are all healthy, we have a roof over our heads and clothes on our backs, he has a job but most importantly we have each other and our  love for our family and no one can take that away.

  It's the smiles on my children's faces when they have accomplished something, the belly  laughs that come from their happiness, the look of surprise on their faces when they weren't expecting something. It's the hugs and kisses they give every day and the I love yous. It's even the attitudes I get from them when they have to do something they don't want to do and the fighting they do among each other.

 It's the hugs from my husband, the snuggles,the winks, the brush of the arm and kisses. The I love yous from him and the encouraging words we give to each other and our kids and the memories we all create together.

 It's the time we all spend together,eating, watching movies,reading, playing games, doing homework, or even siting in silence. We're together.

 It's the support from our extended family members and daily encouragement we all give each other as  well. It's the friends that stand behind us and help hold us up. The ones give us an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on. the ones who loves us for who we are.   These are the important things. These are the big blessings in small packages that I receive everyday.

  All other things are material things that can be replaced in time but these are the things I'll treasure always. 

 I still have my faith, my pride, my dignity, and my happiness  and I refuse to let someone take those things away regardless of how bad things get. You can beat me down all year long but I am going to get up and keep on getting up. I will not let anyone break me or my spirits. There have been times I have cried to the point I couldn't cry anymore. Times where I have screamed and gotten angry and there have been many of  times I have been ready to throw my hands up and surrender but I haven't and I won't.

 

 So this Thanksgiving and Christmas I may not have alot of material things under the tree or even on the table but I'll have the things that matter the most . There will be family and friends. There will be love, laughs, smiles, kisses, and memories being created at my table and around my tree.  We do and will have much to be thankful for no matter what.

   Yes this year and in the years to come there will be big blessings in little packages being wrapped up to cherish for a lifetime and nothing not even the economy can take that away.