Love Actually is All Around

I've had an interesting few weeks. Since Thanksgiving, I had an expensive car repair, my fridge break (necessitating buying a new one), plumbing problems...the list goes on. The icing on the cake? My Christmas tree fell over last night, breaking a few precious ornaments. I had to lean it against the wall to help it make it through these last couple days before Christmas. None of this has been fun.  It's been expensive, inconvenient and annoying.  But I find myself giving thanks anyway.  Perhaps I'm even more grateful because these things have happened. There are a lot of terrible things going on in the world right now.  People are in real crisis - fleeing war, grieving loved ones lost, fighting cancer.  These are the real problems, right? When I look at the past month in my life, yes. It was expensive, inconvenient and annoying.  But I had the money saved to fix my car and buy a new fridge.  I have a Christmas tree with gifts underneath.  How many people in the world ca

My birthday is September 11. I was born long before THE September 11, but since 2001 my birthday has been marked by the events of that day. My life has been marked, as all of ours were.  I know a lot of people were touched far more deeply than I was. But there is a strange...something...that happens when your birthday is 9/11.  The day that had always been used to celebrate my life is also now a day where we remember death and great loss.  It's sobering.  I wake up in the morning to lovely texts and Facebook messages from friends near and far.  And I'm also confronted by photos of planes going into the WTC. I feel protective of my birthday. Ever since 9/11/01, I have planned birthday parties for myself every year.  I think I am trying so hard to remind myself that I can celebrate my birthday. I should celebrate my birthday.  I try to remember it is ok to feel joy and happiness on a day when others are grieving. I was driving to work on my birthday this year, and it was ove