Another Birthday!

Ah yes! Another Birthday! It almost caught me off guard this year, not in a bad way, but just catching me by surprise. Over the last several years I have found myself not being appreciative of my birthdays. Not for the obvious, getting older thing, but for a few other reasons.

Every year I get older, I get closer to my mother's age when she died. I'm just a few years shy of that. And I focus on that instead of positiveness!

However, this week I chose to NOT think about that! I chose to be thankful for what I have and for another year. I chose to think of the wonderful gifts I have, my husband, my 3 boys, my students at school, their families who bless me and so much more. And it was a great birthday! A blessed birthday!

One thing that dawned on me though and I've been contemplating it all week. I have lived as many years without my mom as I have with her. I was blessed to have my mother in my life for 19 years. In July, it will be 19 years since she died. Not exactly sure why, but it almost took my breath away.

You may think that after 19 years I wouldn't think of her often, but I have found that the older I get, the more I think of her and think of what I would LOVE to ask her....

"When you taught Freshman English...."

"When you were 38...."

"When Kory or me....what did you do?"

"Did you ever feel like you were going crazy?"

And I could go on!

But I was thankful that this birthday I was able appreciate my birthday and the blessings that God has given me. That I could and can trust Him and know that whatever this next year brings, it will pass through His hands and He will be with me!