A Year of Gratitude – March 19, 2024

I found gratitude today for something that happened weeks ago. Earlier this year, I hopped on a plane rather unexpectedly to fly South for a few days to visit friends and support a friend whose family had suffered a great loss. I rarely leave home, so it was a real stretch for me. In fact, I hadn’t flown anywhere in nearly a decade.

While the trip was last minute, I was fortunate to have family at home who could pitch in to make sure that the animals were tended to. I knew that I was leaving things in capable hands. Yet, it was difficult for me to leave the routine of my daily to dos behind. It was hard to release them from my grasp and just go on faith that everything would be okay, that those tasks would either be handled in my absence or waiting for me when I returned.

Yet board that plane I did. While I wished that the reason for my last minute trip had been more joyful, I was ready to find reasons to be filled with joy and gratitude for being able to take it at all. I was filled with equal parts excitement for the trip ahead and apprehension about leaving at all.

I left that apprehension behind and set out to enjoy a few days of sunshine and warmth. This was the view on my first morning. I was up to see the sunrise as it climbed above the horizon. I listened to the waves. I watched the seabirds in the sky and scampering around on the sand. It was lovely.

Today, I looked back at the photos from my trip. A smile came across my face. It was a good time. It was nice to put down the daily chores for a few days, to just breathe deep and relax a bit. It felt good to allow myself to do that. I gave myself permission to take a break and not feel guilty about it. That’s something I don’t come by easily, but I’m working on it.

This photo today was a nice reminder that I should do that more often. I should allow myself to recharge, to reconnect to the person I am. Doing so will help me to be better at the day to day tasks I need to accomplish here at the farm. It also sets a good example for my children. I want them to be able to do the same for themselves when they are my age.

Of course, we can’t always hop on a plane and go to the beach. In fact, I hadn’t done that for twenty years. I know that this photo is from a trip to the beach, but I have the ability to relax and recharge right here without ever boarding a plane. I just have to give myself permission, allow myself a few moment’s time. I’m going to do that in the year ahead, practice the skill until it becomes something that I do naturally.

So, here’s the beach on the first morning of my trip. I’ll be sharing more of the photos and videos I took with you in the coming days. I hope that you’ll find them to be peaceful. I hope that they’ll remind you to breathe deep, to give yourself permission to recharge whether you do so on a sunny beach or in your pajamas from the comfort of your home.

I’ll choose the version in my pajamas because there’s no place I’d rather be than home with my family.  The beach was beautiful, but it just made me even more certain that the farmhouse is my favorite place on Earth.

This post is part of our A Year of Gratitude Series. You can find the introduction, inspiration, and entire year’s gratitude’s posts here.