The reality is...

I have lost much in life. I have learned to live a life in spite of pain and heartache. But the reality is that I have an amazing, simple life regardless of my past. I see myself as blessed. I live a full life. I have everything I need and more. I am happy and content at this moment. It hit me in a big way this morning. My heart is heavy for a lot of people in my life and the struggles they face each day- some with money and jobs, some with marriages and family, and some with their health or pain of grief.
I am seeing more and more that I have a really great life. Not without scars and not without challenges. But each day I wake and thank God for the blessings and mercy He has shown me. I am learning that life isn't about what we get...but about how we learn to appreciate what we've been given.
That is the lesson I am learning to love more and more as time goes on. This ties in a little bit to the challenge I have posted over at SIStv this week. You can scrap a layout and post a link on the website and be given a chance to win some great prizes. The layout I scrapped is one of my favorite pictures of Teagan- ever. She was so carefree- so happy that Fourth of July- just a couple of weeks before she died. We had no idea what lay just ahead of her- or us. Our lives were really blessed in that moment...and I was happy that we were enjoying our time together as a family. It was a rare thing for us to do so on a holiday in the summer. Golf is a demanding, busy job in the summer.
But that year, Chip had part of the day off. So we went to Mackinaw and spent the day with friends and watched the fireworks. I do recall feeling really good about how things were going in our lives, I was thankful for freedom, and I loved that our kids were growing and so happy almost all the time. Teagan was so into giving hugs around the neck and pouring on the love and kisses really thick.
It still makes me catch my breath that it was all taken away so suddenly- so senselessly- so randomly. Yet here we are- years later- and Teagan is still a part of my memories and the cause for a lot of smiles in my life. I love that my girls are still wearing some of her hand-me-downs and that her pictures are still around the house and little memories- her toys, her books, her dolls- are still getting under my feet and a part of the mess that is much of our house all the time. =)
She's here- in our hearts and lives forever. We will never forget her or 'get over her'. Yet where there once was a huge hole in our hearts, it has been filled with goodness, blessing and Joy. Yes. I may not have the best life, the easiest life, the most glamorous life. But I have peace and contentment and Hope and Joy. I have more than I deserve...and everything I need.