Simple Blessings

What would you say are blessings in your life? Very often in our world today blessings are defined based upon our own personal success, material objects, and accomplishments. Especially in the United States, the hashtag #firstworldproblems is used to talk about “problems” such as a broken phone, an “uncool car”, or something as silly as not being able to login to social media. While I understand how some people consider these things to be “problems” I personally try to focus my energy on issues that are much larger than these such as how to create a world where more often than not everyone gets along and where we together to create the world a better place to be for everyone.

Recently I was thinking about blessings in my life and I realized how much we often take for granted that are truly blessings. This past week I was sick and due to a sinus infection, I developed an ear infection that left me unable to hear in one of my ears. As a person who enjoys music and learns songs through hearing them it was incredibly difficult for me to not be able to hear out one of my ears. When I did attempt to sing, it was crazy not being able to hear myself. Despite my frustration for this I realized how lucky I am that I normally do have the ability to hear and this hearing loss is just temporary and will be relieved. Our senses alone are amazing, however very rarely do we really stop to realize how blessed we are to experience them. Throughout my life I have lost my voice due to laryngitis, taste due to the common cold, and now recently my hearing due to a sinus infection. Although I could have taken time to mourn the loss of these at the time, I just felt more grateful that under normal circumstances I get blessed to have all of my senses working. This made me even more impressed with individuals who are going through life and who do not get to experience the beauty of all of the senses. One such individual, Andrea Bocelli, cannot see yet has a successful music career and one of the greatest voices of our time. Seeing individuals like this just make me more grateful and thankful for all of the blessings in my life.

The next time you are down, think about all of the blessings in your life that you may take for granted. Life isn’t about the greatest car, phone, or most successful job rather it is about appreciating every day and the beauty that comes with the day. Leaves falling, the sunshine on your skin during a spring day, or the gentle breeze of a summer day in addition to our senses are such blessings that often get taken for granted. I hope that you can find at least one thing to be grateful for on a daily basis, because it is the little things that really make a difference and enrich our lives.       

Be the Change That You Would Like to See in the World

     By the very nature of my blogs mission statement located above it is apparent that my goal is to help others no matter how small the task is. I try to accomplish this on a daily basis by doing small things such as holding the door open for others, helping out someone pick up something they have dropped, or simply trying to brighten up someone’s day. No matter the task I enjoy doing it because seeing others happy makes me happy to have positively influenced their lives.  If you are a “follower” of my blog, many of you may remember that a couple months ago, I lost an amazing job opportunity due to circumstances that were out of my control. I wrote about it here and at the time I did not understand why it occurred however so much more came from this loss.

      I have always wanted to “make my mark” somehow in our world, don’t get me wrong this does not include fame and fortune but just somehow touching the lives of others. I recently discovered that I have made a small mark by changing a state policy which now allows individuals a smoother transition when seeking licensure in this particular state. If you told me five years ago I would have changed a state policy I would have told you that you were crazy, however this is my reality. Although I was not personally able to start a job in this state, I now know that others in my position have an easier time when they seek licensure and have jobs on the line. My story just goes to show you have no idea what kind of an impact that you can make on the world. If you see something you would like to change feel free to try to do something to change it to be even better than it already is. With this small change I can only imagine what I can accomplish in the future but I am excited to find out! No matter how small something may seem it can make a lasting impact on our world and lives as we know it.

One song that personifies my values of helping and making a lasting and positive mark on our world is  “I Was Here” sung by Kristin Chenoweth. I hope you enjoy the song.