Responsibility

Life has become naught but a whirlwind. I can't remember when I was last able to sit and just enjoy my day. Even my showers are quick and hurried. It's quite a treat when I can linger and let the hot water run cold. The new job is interesting - a lot of responsibility. At the end of the day though, I feel accomplished. I am making a difference in the way this place will run and that, is a pretty wonderful feeling.

Looking around at my surroundings constantly reminds me of the blessings in my life. I just wonder why other people cannot stop and notice the good. I was one of those people who focused very narrowly on the negative - it's so easy to do because it doesn't require any work. It takes work to notice the positive, especially when things aren't working out for the best.

The economic crisis that is currently plaguing our country (and our world) is yet another picture of how important it is to be thankful for the good. If someone had asked me, more than 5 years ago, where I saw myself at this stage in my life - my answer would not have placed me here. I saw accomplishment as earning multiple degrees, having a high paying career, being entirely self-sufficient and never (ever) submitting to another human being (even in marriage). It's amazing how life changes though; we can take the change and accept it or can spend our days wishing it were different. I look at my circumstances and am so, deeply thankful. I may not have many of the things I once thought were important, but I realize that none of those things would have given me joy. Happiness is irrelevant, it fades, it's circumstantial, it's a fleeting emotion tied to the status quo. I am not saying that happiness isn't important. My wedding day was a happy day. I was happy on my honeymoon. Birthdays and holidays make me happy (for the most part). Those are all things that we can rely on to make us happy. But what happens when the day is over? When all the people are gone and the attention has departed? Where is one left in that moment? If happiness is the sole emotion one relies on to get through life, it will be an unfortunate life, indeed. Marriage is a wonderful picture of this emotion. The "honeymoon" phase of marriage (which I am told I am still in) should be the happiest time in the couples' shared life, shouldn't it? So what happens when the "honeymoon" ends, so to speak? Why do so many marriages end in divorce? This isn't to say that there aren't valid reasons for divorce. Biblically speaking, there are valid reasons. However, the reason cited for many divorces: irreconcilable differences. What does that even mean? The happiness died down and suddenly we are left with a person that we hardly know, wondering what happened to the better times. I am certainly no expert on marriage or the wonder of making it last for 30+ years. I do however, admire those who have maintained that status for so many years. Isn't it about finding JOY and CONTENTMENT with what you have been given? I think so.