Ten Things of Thankful – is now ten years old – Happy Birthday, old friend; congratulations to all that made it happen and kept it going. My first Ten Things of Thankful was posted on June 7, 2014, and sadly the last on June 24, 2016. So for me, it was a lovely, dedicated two-year run.

I stopped writing in 2016  – and it was for many reasons, but truthfully not good ones. The reasons should not have outweighed the end of what I love to do, which is to write. The reasons ranged from uncontrollable change to finding the time to write. There may have been a tad of fear in the mix as well.  

It’s been seven years;  wow, that boggles my mind – since then, my job changed in 2016; the company I worked for sold to an enormous corporation I still work for today. At the time, the integration was very time-consuming, along with personal happenings, such as worrying and watching my parents’ health decline right before my eyes. We had a pandemic, and our entire world shut down. There is so much division among us which may have been ascerbated because of the pandemic. And here on this platform, many individuals from different backgrounds and beliefs come together for one common purpose to share and remind us all of the silver linings. 

Bravo!

 A round of applause!         

So without further ado, here are my Ten Things of Thankful:

1. Thank you, everyone, for setting the tone, continuing this path, and posting each week to remind me to be thankful.
2. I have a good job that allows me to work remotely or go to the office.
3. Clean sheets – every week!
4. We just switched out the winter-summer clothes, and boy, oh boy, we all did a major purge, and it felt good. Seven big waste bags were filled and donated.
   • I am thankful that the job is done.
   • That my family made it into an event.
   • We all had the same mindset to purge what we had an abundance of and donate it.
5. The air quality is good on Long Island – however, I cannot imagine what our neighbors from the North are going through.
6. My sister and brother-in-law visited us last night for coffee and dessert. It was nice catching up with them, laughing, and enjoying their leisure time.  
7. My craft room/ office- I created a charming creative space that allows me to regroup, relax and create. I crafted some cute things; it is stocked well, and I can make almost anything anytime.

Some crafting projects

• My family …..celebrating our family day and my birthday –

• My Sisters. Our parents are no longer with us, but without a doubt, we still have each other below are pictures of a creative project we are doing together. It is a shared junk/art journal that we each take turns filling the pages – for me; it is an open letter to them.

1. My dog – he is my shadow and comic relief. He is fascinated with our neighbor’s sprinkler.

My ten  –  I may not always honor my gratitude out loud, but they are always whispered under my breath, close to my heart, and always there on the days that may be scary and uncertain. Thank you for inviting me to this beautiful milestone.