Thanksgiving 2011

I was re-reading my post from last year's Thanksgiving.  How very different my life is now.  And thankfully so.  I can sum up my gratitude in one small sentence:  I survived.  

• I survived the removal of not just a person, but an entire family from my life.  
• I survived the death of a grandmother that couldn't stand me.  But in the end, I sat with her, helped her move on, held her hand as she passed from this life.
• I survived the loss of a dear friend.  Not to death, but to a disagreement when the needs of the many outweighed the needs of the one.  
• I survived surgery.  Am still surviving surgery.
• I survived a relationship that I couldn't commit to, yet still took an emotional beating over.
• I survived betrayal by two people I thought were friends.  And the betrayal of someone we took into our home. 

When I stopped focusing on all the things that were going wrong, I realized that so many more things had gone right.  Did a friend betray me?  Yes, but she brought a new, beautiful friend into my life.  Did I lose a grandparent with whom I'll never be able to make amends?  Yes, but now we are finally the family we were meant to be.  Close, loving and happy.
A year.  What a difference a year can make.  I start college in January.  I've found purpose through serving in the community.  I have true friends.  I'm still searching in my faith, but I've met other seekers who have made the journey so beautiful.
Would I want to endure this year again?  No, not really.  But am I thankful for how it's shaped me?  Yes.
One last thing....If you pray for things like wisdom or for God to mold you and shape you, be prepared.  He likes 'hands on' lessons.  


Isaiah 64:8 Yet, O LORD, You are our Father. We are the clay, You are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.clay, you are the potter; we

are all the work of your hand.