Year 2010 is not yet over, but as I gazing blankly at a display of batteries for sale at a well-known hardware store earlier this afternoon, I was hit by the proverbial bolt of lightning - I got a lot to be thankful for this year! I don't know why that particular display just plugged that thought in my mind but there you have it.
2010 isn't what you would lovingly describe as my best year....for one there was not-so-welcome-news about taxes at the workplace, and daily living expenses still increase at an exponentially higher rate than my salary which has not moved in any direction in what feels to be like a zillion years of time-freeze (actually, just since the start of my job)..but there's so much more which could have been worse and I'm still a lucky woman.
With that thought, I had the idea of doing some sort of speed-thanking.
Get it? If there is speed-dating, why not speed-thanking?
As fast as I could and at the top of my head, I tried to cram through in 8 seconds what I ought to be happy and thank my lucky stars for 2010. And...to think that when January 2010 rolled in more than 11 months ago I couldn't be described as doing cartwheels and throwing roses around in celebration.
At random now, because its different when one is thinking furiously fast versus writing it down placidly -
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I had a trip abroad (figures that the most recent activity is what I could recall). I never thought I would be doing it this year, with the way my finances were squeezed but with some planning, research and some priorities, I survived and traveled into more places to a country I never though I'd visit again.
Aside from gathering eye-candy and taking pictures and memories with me, the most soul-satisfying and heart-pumping part was the feeling of accomplishment after all was said and done.
I myself cannot believe I did all those things by myself even with a slight wrench thrown into the plans.
Could be project management skills, or basic survival skills, but I can be smug about initiating, planning, executing, controlling and closing out this trip - not a lot of folks can claim completing that series of activities and being totally satisfied with what was gained - affirmation of what I understand myself to be with all my beauty spots and warts, knowledge that I can depend on myself if push comes to shove and gaining mental and emotional strength from the once-in-a-lifetime experience.
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I had the most number of Philippine trips this year, well, the last time I traveled more, domestic-travel-wise, was back in the late 1990s..and best of all I got to do them with friends I've known for some time (isn't it fulfilling to be with people you know and are comfortable with?)....and how wondrous too was the fact that I saw new faces, made these new friends and parting ways with the certainty that they will also be the kind of friends I could see myself going on a trip with another 10 or 15 years down the road :-)
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For a long time, there was no helper in my parent's home. My parents were by themselves and getting on in years - but thankfully nothing bad has happened to their health - my dad is still as ornery and fussy about food while my mom is still more energetic than I am. He turned 85, she turned 66 and aside from deafness (him) and BP problems (her), they seem to be still better off than parents of my peers.
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I have 2 new cameras for this year. My Olympus may have blinked (but not out of existence) but my GE and Panasonic are now part of my family of cameras. I try to have one new gadget to give in to my gadget fetish (though its not obvious) and to have double the goal is ...an unexpected bonus...something like an extra pat on the back from your favorite mentor after the you get an award for meritorious services from your peers who acknowledge your good job.
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I get to eat the food I get cravings for when I see them - and I don't feel guilty, worry about weight, cholesterol or any bad effects. I just eat what I want and drink what I want.
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The physical check-up c/o our company's annual schedule has turned out as a "pass" in my test results (except for one part of me which I have to check later) but I honestly am not worried anymore also about that particular area. I shall have to go to the doctor though because I never got a second check-up on it. Considering I lack sleep most of the time, have bad eating habits and eat junk food...well, I give a minuscule smile when every year, one or another of the medical staff remarks that I look young for my age when they read my chart. I whisper dramatically, "Probably the junk food...." and they wink back but shake their head resignedly.
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I get to indulge in impromptu meet-ups and eating out with friends, in spite of the weird work schedule I have.
If BDO says "we find ways", I could tell charmingly announce to them, "I did it first!".
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I may have bigger taxes, but I still manage to pay my bank loan out of the fruits of my labor and nobody else's help. No family members, boyfriend, husband, lover (paid lover? haha!), friend, acquaintance or whoever that I need to be indebted to, except the steady banking institution earning a fat interest on my housing loan.
Maybe it was some foresight earlier which helped me hit the correct amount to pay off every month, but how lucky is it, that with some adjustments in my lifestyle and spending habits I am not crawling on the floor crying my eyes in a never-ending tantrum out at the lowered stipend I receive?
And...oops...time's up!
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Well.. eight seconds are obviously not enough time..but haven't you noticed?
There are some people out there who can spend those precious eight seconds bemoaning their fate or pointing out negative aspects of their lives.
Which is really a waste - how could they then enjoy the euphoria and give off that aura of compleat happiness upon realizing they actually have so many gifts heaped up in big piles and surrounding them?
....Such a chock-ful of blessings that they forget to see and acknowledge what is presently in their hands... because they look away and focus instead to what they think others possess.
Hey, how about trying it yourself and seeing how cushy a life you actually have?
Share with me, with us.....your network of friends...and we can all bask in that goodwill and joy that people with acknowledged blessings give out....
THANK YOU FOR COMING OVER AND READING THIS, AND BEING A PART OF MY LIFE.
was searching for the :like: button here...hehe!
ReplyDeleteyou certainly have many to thank for Cath=)
ReplyDeletelumabas na ang FB traits..:-)
ReplyDeletehi Chelo, yes indeed, I should do this kind of thing every day...
ReplyDeleteCould be that you compared People with Batteries, both need "Recharging" now and again.
ReplyDeleteHugs.
hey, thats a good simile John...nice idea!
ReplyDeleteprobably subconsciously I was tired and my brain and heart wired itself to give me that boost :-)
thank you...
You're welcome.
ReplyDeleteHugs.
Nice post. Thanks Cat.
ReplyDeletethanks for dropping by Mar.
ReplyDeleteWell said Cat. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeletethanks be to GOD for we have given short time to think that we are alive to give thanks to our creator
ReplyDeletethank you BNK!
ReplyDeleteoo, pasalamat gyod ta buhi pa ta...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to be healthy and alive!
ReplyDeleteah..eto pala button hinanap ni Meann...
ReplyDelete