November and the holidays begin ...

I'm trying. I truly am. To be thankful. God has blessed me - I am a blessed woman. God is good - all the time. And all the time - God is good. Even if the healing doesn't come ... Even when life falls apart and dreams go undone ... God is God. And He is good and faithful. So - yes, I am thankful.

I am also thankful that Rick was not a big holiday person. That just was not his personality. He was of the opinion that holidays were way too worldly, way too much commercialized. We always celebrated the holidays - but we did it different than most that we knew. We worked to take the holidays back to a more basic LIFE living than just one day a year. And when the "one day" would come around, yes - we celebrated. But even then, he insisted (and I agreed) to do it more basic, with as little of the commercialization as possible.

Were we right or wrong? I don't know. We were just US.
I do know this - I am thankful for all those years together that he was the way he was. He taught us more how to LIVE this life than what I think he ever knew.
*To take each day as a new beginning - New Year's Day
*to love one another, show that love, tell that love - every day, all the time - Valentine's Day
*to rejoice in the Risen Savior always - Easter
*to remember our military and their families - all gave some, some gave all - Memorial Day and Veteran's Day
*to celebrate our freedoms in America - even when it seems that we have less and less. He was a Patriot - he bled red, white and blue! - 4th of July
*to appreciate the labors of the America workers - and to always be kind to those who served us, to be sure and express our appreciation - Labor Day.
*Halloween? We never did celebrate that. Well, we did - but it was only because it was Granny McCoy's birthday!
*I Thessalonians 5:16-18 ... "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - Thanksgiving
*and to always and forever remember that Jesus is the Reason not only for the "season" - but the Reason for our life, our very breath.

So, see why our LIFE is hard without him? why the grief is so intense? not just the holiday season. It will be the first "holiday season" without my husband, without daddy, and without p-paw. Because it is our first LIFE without him.

I love you Sweetheart. Thank you.