Simple Blessings

 

On this New Year's Eve, as another year comes to a close, I am flooded with feelings of profound gratitude for those simple daily blessings that we often take for granted. Certain circumstances in my life have really opened my eyes recently.

For the past ten days, I've had a nasty head cold: no fever, no flu or Covid, just the full head that makes you lose your sense of smell and taste. I suffered with it through the busyness of Christmas, but was especially sad that I couldn't smell or taste any of the wonderful holiday delights. Then, two days ago, in the midst of a terrible windstorm, our 18-year-old furnace died and we had no heat until the repair company could install a new one.

Thankfully, after freezing for a full night and morning, our new furnace was up and running and by the evening, our house was toasty warm. I was filled with gratitude, but couldn't help thinking about all the people in the world who don't have such basic comforts as a warm home and hot water.

Yesterday morning, I got my long-awaited new glasses. For months, I had suffered with badly smudged glasses that made it very difficult to see things clearly. It was beyond annoying. When I tried on the new glasses, it was as if the world had suddenly opened up: everything became crystal clear! (Unfortunately, so did the dirt in my house), but hey, it needed a good cleaning!

And then, this morning, I picked up an ornament from the living room floor and put it back on our live tree. As I touched the tree, the beautiful scent of pine flooded my suddenly rediscovered sense of smell and I nearly cried! I ran around the house, excitedly smelling everything: my "Holiday Heaven" essential oil; freshly made coffee, toast, my new sage and citrus candle...I felt like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, when she opens the door in the land of Oz and everything transforms to color. I thought about all the people in the world who have lost the use of an important physical ability; whether sight; hearing; smell or physical movement, and I uttered a prayer that I would never again take these things for granted.

Each day, we are given a fresh start: we can either choose to complain about the things that are not going right, or we can open our eyes and become intensely mindful about every good blessing: sometimes the simplest ones are the best.