The little things...

My sister wrote something in response to my last blog that touched me very deeply and got me to thinking...She told a story about a family that lost their only child & then she said,"Be thankful for the little cuts, stitches & bruises...they are nothing compared to losing a child..." WOW!!! Very powerful...And very true. It is so easy to look at our lives in a negative light. But do you ever stop to think about the next person who has it worse than you? I once knew this person who was always sad & talking about how horrible that their life was. I felt so bad for this person. Because if we do not acknowledge our blessings, how can we receive them? Yes, very easy to sit around & have pity parties thinking about what a raw deal we are getting, how messed up our own circumstances are. And honestly, I too once did that.When I was a teenager living with my Dad, before I had my oldest child, Andrew, I was so depressed. There were many days when I didn't even have the strength to get out of bed. I can remember thinking,"Why do I have this life? What did I do to deserve this?" I wasn't living a life for God. I felt all alone. Completely unloved. Sure, there were a lot of really messed up things happening, a lot of things that a child should not have to endure. But I should have turned to God, because through it all...He loved me. Through all the things I went though as a an adolescent, I learned. I learned what not to do with my children. I learned how to protect them. I learned how painful certain things are. And I wouldn't take back any of those heartaches, not one single one, if it means being able to protect my children from enduring the same pain.  When I had Andrew, everything changed. I felt like God blessed me with the most wonderful thing he could have ever given me...A child to love. I was finally able to express all of this love I had in my heart. Finally able to give it to someone & have it reciprocated. Since the day Andrew was born, there has not been one single day where I did not get out of bed because I was to depressed to face the day. I don't know...there are times when I am sad, but I just feel that allow myself to be depressed, would be saying that my children are not good enough. I have my children. At the end of the day, I can handle whatever life throws at me, because I have them. When Juan lost his job, I could see him slipping into sadness. I just kept telling him,"We have each other & the babies. We will make it through...As long as we have our little family..." Things have certainly changed when it comes to our life style & we are on a very tight budget now. But each time we worry about shutting of the lights to save on the power bill, I can't help but be thankful to God that we even have power...For there are some who do not. Each time we worry about paying our rent every month, I cannot help but be thankful  that we have a place to live...For there are many who do not. When we worry about gas for the van? Thankful...for there are many who do not have a vehicle at all. And each time the babies tell me they all want different things for dinner, I am so thankful to God that we have food to feed our children, for there are many Mother's who do not...I am thankful for all of the things that we have, even though it may not seem like much to some. I have the love of my little family and God. I am rich...