Who I'm Thankful For

Photo credit:  asoggetti on Unsplash

The older I get, the more I realize how much the "whos" in my life mean to me.  Those people that are there, day after day, rejoicing when things are good, and lifting me up when my soul needs a soft place to land.  Challenging me to be better, but never judging when I fall.

Truly, everything else could go be gone tomorrow.  My house, my job, all the things I think I need to survive.  But strip it down, and all that matters are the "whos".

It's been exactly two years since my dad passed away, suddenly and unexpectedly.  Truth be told, he was a grumpy pain in the ass who was never going to win dad of the year. But I loved him with all my heart and he's a "who" that I miss every single day. 

In the months before we lost dad, we were slowly and sadly letting go of my uncle, as he fought his final battle with cancer.  The family had rallied around my aunt and cousins, trying to strengthen them for the day we knew was coming.  And then in an awful second it was my dad and not my uncle who was gone.  But that circle of strength and love widened and I was comforted by those "whos" who set aside their pain and helped soothe mine. 

Now, as I sit here on the other side of that difficult time, I've learned a lot about not taking the "whos" for granted.  But still, it's human nature to get caught up in the "things" and forget about the "whos".  Stuff gets in the way, we're tired and busy and caught up in all the day to day that makes a life.  So I keep that quote by Proust on my phone, and try to remember to be thankful for the "whos" that make me happy.  

My husband.
My boys.
Family that has been there since the beginning of me.
New friends and old friends.

They're my "whos", and I guess I'm theirs.

And I'm so thankful.


I'm linking up today with The Blended Blog for our November thankful series.  Come join us!