I do not at all understand the mystery of grace – only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us.  -Anne Lamott 

One cannot possibly see the future several steps ahead. You might be a master chess player and be able to predict what your opponent and yourself will do for many moves ahead, but you cannot know what lies ahead of you on your life path. As humans we spend so much time wrapped up in what happened yesterday and what might happen tomorrow.

We spend so little time on today.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. How doing just a simple life thing is so beautiful, if we think about it too hard we’ll cry from the shining loveliness.

A few weeks ago I was feeling a bit lost. I was wondering if anything I say on this blog reaches anyone, and I put that idea out there. I wrote a post asking “what does this all mean?” and “is anyone listening?”

It turns out a lot of you are listening. A Lot. The response to me in person, via text message, email, Instagram, WordPress, and Facebook messenger has been so humbling. And what you have been saying to me-about how my writing and my retelling of my story and how it makes you feel braver, seen, able to grow, ready to make changes-well. I just can’t even.

It is one of the most humbling and validating things I’ve ever experienced in my life.

Hearing that my story helps you makes me feel so proud and so speechless. I’m just here being me. I’m no more special than you are, I promise. You are capable of telling your story and/or living your most attuned life, too. RIGHT NOW. You don’t have to be anything but YOU to be your most awesome youness. You are already you. You’re complete. Right now. Enough.

Here are some of the blessings from my Monday, a great day. Even though I was snippy with Tom for a minute, there are tough issues with one of the teenagers, I realized I’m calling my ELL student the totally wrong name and she was too polite to correct me, my dog is eating for both dogs (sneaking the other’s food and getting tubby), I’m behind at work and my car needs an oil change, it was still wonderful.

Monday Blessings:

• One of my students that struggles worked so hard behaviorally did Great in math today. They were thinking and doing some beginning problem solving. I was super proud.
• Piper and I are planning matching Mom/Daughter sunflower tattoos to do at the same time, pretty soon.
• I tutored from 445-645 and loved every minute of it. <3 There’s so much life and I’m honored they let me in their homes.
• I went grocery shopping at 7. There was a mama with 3 young boys shopping and she was doing great with them. Two in the cart and one walking along side. She and her boys joked and loved each other through teasing while the youngest two rode in the cart. It made me tell her “bless you, you’re rocking it.” They were wearing her out a little. I tried to tell her how lucky we are that we get to go grocery shopping with and for our families, but she was too tired. I told her shopping with 3 boys after 730 was rockstar status.

Be aware of how truly amazing you are, every day. Shopping with your family, making dinner, surviving the after school witching hour, guiding teenagers. It’s all hard. And it’s all your life and a really big gift.