May I Always Choose To be Grateful

8:10 a.m. — That’s what time our kids are supposed to be ready to walk out the door in the mornings: shoes and jacket on.

8:18 a.m. — Nathan, my 11-year-old, never-gets-in-a-hurry son, is sitting on the bench by the door putting on his shoes. Sophie, my easygoing, 9-year-old daughter, walks out of her room to ask if her shoes that are getting too small will rub off her new toenail polish.

 “Probably.”

 She asks if she can change.

“Quickly.”

“Mom!” She yells. “I can’t find any socks!”

Walking through the house, I say, “If you would straighten out your drawer, you could find some.” I look in the drawer. I immediately find a pair.

Back to the garage entry door I go. Waiting. Nathan is still putting on his shoes. I can feel myself getting tense, my heart rate rising. “Be patient,” I tell myself. Tilting my head back, I take a deep breath. There I see it, a gentle reminder. Above the door opening hangs a sign I put up shortly after we moved into our house nearly five years ago: Just Another Day in Paradise. I smile and feel the tension fade.

Yes, this is the life I wanted. It is the life I still cherish. These are the kids for whom I prayed. These are the children who consume my thoughts and my heart. The children who love Jesus and say “yes ma’am” and “no ma’am.” The children who give me hugs every day. So healthy, they have not missed a single day of school this year. So smart and diligent, they are both on the honor roll. And I am grateful for them.

As I look at the words, “Another day in paradise,” I think of my husband, who kisses me goodbye and tells me he loves me every morning before going to work. I’m grateful for him too. I prayed for a husband who would love and cherish me, who would work hard and be a family man. God answered that prayer too.

I think of this house where the plaque hangs. The house I never thought would be ours. God, in His timing, delayed the sale of our old house in a declining neighborhood (robbed twice!) until the price of our current home met our budget. The sale of the old and purchase of the new happened simultaneously. His timing was perfect. Now we live in a neighborhood where our kids have friends to play with and our neighbors are our friends and coworkers. Again, an answered prayer, and I am grateful.

It’s amazing how being grateful can change one’s perspective in an instant. How our hearts can beat to a different drum with the change of a thought. How our attitudes can improve when we are reminded, or purposely remind ourselves, how blessed we truly are. I recall a quote my aunt used to repeat: “A complaining tongue reveals an ungrateful heart.”

May I always choose to be grateful.