The Kind Of Week Where It's Easy To See How Thankful You Truly Are

The past few days have been hard. So much sadness and destruction and loss of life. My heart hurts for those who are hurting. If there were ever a time to reflect on my many thankfuls, this is it. Here are my thankfuls for this week:

1. We had yucky weather again this week. On Wednesday, sleet began to fall mid-morning, and it was decided school needed to close early. HUGE thankful, because the sleet was piling up.

2. It not only sleeted, but it was bitterly cold with a biting wind. Streets were covered, and there was no potential for melting. Guess what? Snow day for Thursday, too!

3. Got more sleet and more snow on Thursday, which led to - you guessed it - snow day on Friday! Can't. Even. Believe it. It's pretty rare for us to get snow days for multiple days in a row!

4. I made terrific use of my time off by doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. Okay, not entirely true. I spent most of my time blowing my nose, since I either have had a nasty head cold or my sinus infection/Covid is still with me. It's better now. Not GONE, but better. 

5. Lewis, my handsome tuxedo cat, enjoys playing with "found" items, meaning he goes in a room and finds something that was never intended for him to have in the first place and takes it. This habit started with taking stuffed animals and trinkets from the kids' rooms, escalated to  loose change left on table tops or counters, a wooden ruler that he carried all over the upstairs, and pipe cleaners that he learned how to open a drawer to obtain. 

In an attempt to stop my glasses from steaming up when I was out, I ordered aluminum nose bridge strips for my homemade face masks about a year ago. I never could get them to work with my mask pattern, so I gave up on trying. This week, Lewis was obviously rummaging around in my craft/sewing room, because I began to find these aluminum strips EVERYWHERE. They have become Lewis's new favorite source of entertainment. I shall concede that at least they are being useful for SOMETHING. I believe there were 100 in the package, so he will be entertained for some time to come.

6. My daughter is at it again. Last week, I announced she had made Law Review. This week, she was selected to be an associate justice on the campus Supreme Court, whose jurisdiction is the entire student body, including undergrad, graduate, and professional programs.

7. Our temps bounced up to the low 50s Fahrenheit this weekend, and is it any wonder my sinuses are a disaster?! 

8. There was virtually no wind this weekend, so I opened the windows in our bedroom, and the cats were in heaven! They are strictly indoor cats, and they don't try to escape into the big world, but they sure like to look at it and hear it and smell it from the safety of the windowsill!

9. My friend and co-worker Karen is retiring, and tomorrow will be her last day. I am extremely thankful for all the support she has given me, especially when I first started. Happy retirement, my friend!

10. Last night, I dreamed I was pregnant. I woke up a little panicked before I realized it was a dream. I'm 61 and that ship has done sailed!

Holy One, we pray from the relative safety of our homes and offices far from the threats of invading troops and the destruction of bombs and missiles, but we are mindful, O God, that our world is deeply interconnected. So on this day, we offer a prayer for peace.

We pray for your deep Wisdom and discerning Spirit to pour out on our world. We pray for a vision of the future that is grounded in collaboration and humility and not in competition and control. We pray for the power of words to prevail over the power of military might.

And we pray for the people of Russia and Ukraine. With sighs too deep for words we pray to You.

We pray for peace.

Peace in our hearts.

Peace in our homes.

Peace in our world.

O God, hear our prayer.

~Community Christian Church, KCMO

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