The Things That Matter

I have spent a lot of time wanting what wasn’t mine.  Wanting things that others have.  Wanting what seems to be better than what I possess. The error in such want is that so much slips by in my shortsighted view.   The friend I forget despite efforts to the contrary, the husband who stands quietly by my side and cheers me on, the employee who works resolutely, without claim for recognition, for the things for which I strive.  I can lament the humble results of my dreams, but risk by doing so the gifts revealed in the smaller steps I seem to resent.   

Forgive me.   Today I grieve the simple things that I take for granted.  More specifically, I grieve missing their importance.  On the wow scale they may seem small, but truth be known they give so much to my life.   They entail my husband’s morning song as he greets our dogs and rejoices the sun.  They embrace the finding of a simple treasure, like a succulent that needs care, or a bird that needs a home.   They are the things that matter, and so much more.  

I grieve, I think, because I take these special gifts for granted and fear I miss the mark. And I do miss the mark.  Yet the minute I do so, I realize grieving has no place and only masks the real need.  To rejoice in what I have.  To be aware it is not too late to embrace the gifts given.   

I am aware now how much I miss in life.  I work hard, but it is not enough when you consider that for which I work.  If I try too hard, I risk losing sight of why I bother.   When it comes down to it, bottom line, it is about love and making sure you say the words – I love you.  I appreciate you.  I thank you for what you give me.