Here's to hard work and gratitude

When I started this blog, I promised myself that it was going to be real.  I wasn't going to brush over things that don't fit into the "ideal" way I'd have my life go if I was in complete control.  Cause heck, if I was in complete control, Scott would be done with school and settling in at his new engineering job with a company in Denver, we'd be living in a cute apartment with plenty of savings getting ready to go towards a down payment on a house, and we'd be preparing to welcome a little baby into our lives.  That would be my ideal I think.  But since life is real and not just my fantasy, things aren't like that right now for us.  And I think before Thanksgiving I had gotten kind of caught up in focusing on things that haven't gone as planned for us, or things that are going to further complicate getting to where we want to be.  I had been feeling quite overwhelmed.  And, ironically, the day before Thanksgiving was probably the worst.  I just couldn't get my head around why some things can be so difficult and was kind of having a pity party for myself.

But then as we were cooking and having a good time working hard to get everything ready in time, I realized how great I really have it and how it is not a bad thing at all to have to work hard for something.  Whether that thing is a Thanksgiving dinner, good grades, fitness, or marriage.  Hard work is what makes anything feel like an accomplishment.  It kind of reminds me of the line in "A League of Their Own" where Geena Davis' character is quitting the league because it just got too hard and Tom Hanks responds with "Of course it's hard! If it wasn't hard everybody would do it!  The hard is what makes it great!"  I kind of want to say of course marriage is hard!  If it wasn't everybody would be able to make it last forever!  The hard is what makes it great!  I can truly say that because Scott and I haven't had everything go our way, I have grown to have a greater love for him.  I know that whatever struggles we may have, he's going to stay with me and love me and support me.  That's a great comfort to have.  And even though I sometimes forget that or take it for granted, this weekend has reminded me of it in a big way!  And as I look back, I knew that marriage with Scott was going to be a challenge, and ya wanna know why I did it?  Not only did I receive personal revelation that it was right, but I also knew that we could help each other become better people as we worked and loved together in this life.  It has been hard, but I can't remember a better feeling than recognizing both of our faults and areas we can improve, and then looking at each other and knowing that even with those things, we love each other.  That type of unconditional love is something that I am so grateful to experience everyday with Scott, even when we have disagreements (which quite honestly happens). 

By the end of yesterday, my difficulties, while still there, seemed small when compared to the blessings I have in my life.  In fact, Scott and I had arrived rather early to see a movie, and we just got to sit there talking about our blessings while we waited.  I realized how much we need to do that instead of remembering what we don't have.  That's easy enough to do! haha!  Once you start counting your blessings though and the great things that have happened to you during this year, that becomes easy enough to do as well.  So here's to hard work and gratitude---which I have determined should go hand in hand instead of thinking of them as opposing forces.  Just something to think about this weekend.