Thankful today for the small and for the big

• The beautiful produce that I've just restocked our pantry with.

 

 

• Dancing with the stars, which has started their 12th season this week.  (The children and I watch it on abc.com).

• Our local farmer's market, which opens for the season in less than two weeks (plug the term "farmers market + your city" into a search engine to find out when yours will be opening this year).

• Open windows and fresh breezy air cooling our house in these early days of spring.

• This kerchief I knit last weekend, which is the perfect cure for a bad hair day (details on my Ravelry project page).

• A community of local friends to share and enjoy life with; the good times and the bad.

• Four beautiful and healthy children, and a faithful husband who loves me.

With all of the stories and images of tragedy and loss coming out of Japan right now, I am more aware than ever that I don't deserve all of the beautiful things that I have, the precious family I call my own, this solid house I live in, my soft bed, the clean water we drink and bathe with.  I feel helpless to really make a difference; I cannot physically pull all of the suffering children out of that country and shelter them -- I cannot feed a country.  What I can do is notice and appreciate the beauty and the joy I have around me, and be thankful.  Infinately thankful.