Sticking Together!

Last week I turned 35. Not a monumental milestone, but it got me thinking non the less! I realize that sometimes life creeps up on you and you sometimes get the sense that you have no idea how you got where you are. I love sitting around to reminisce with my family. I look back fondly at watching my kids grow up and all the incredibly funny times we have had. I NEVER look back with regrets. We have not always had an easy time of things. But, we would not be who we are without those bumps in the road. I value the time I have with my family. I want my kids growing up knowing the same love and support that I had as a child. If someone in the family needs something, we are there. That is how it should be. Supporting each other through thick and thin is the way we live our lives. My family will never let me fail and I am grateful for that.

In that late night hours of my birthday, the fire alarm in town began screaming. It did not stop. I knew that it was something big. People were seen running down my street and I had to go check it out. I threw on my clothes and headed out into the night. Large billowing clouds of smoke were seen hanging over our tiny town. My son called me and said that the garage down the street was on fire. The garage is owned by a family that I have known all my life. The owners grew up with my father and they were very much like my own family. Thankfully no one was injured, but the business was a total loss. The next morning after picking Felicia up at preschool we slowly walked toward the place where we frequently dropped off our car for repairs. I wanted to show my support and offer my condolences for their loss. This was their life. As I edged my way past the barricades, I could see the family all together. As I approached them, it struck me how they were all smiling. In the face of something so devastating they were there together. With smiling faces. Not feeling sorry for themselves. They came to work that day! There was little they could do, besides sweeping up some bits of their charred business off the sidewalk, but they were there together. Moving forward.

Things like this always make me want to reevaluate my life. Am I living the way that I want to be? I think I am. Sure I have conflicts sometimes. Will we have that last baby that I have been wanting? Will I go back to work soon? Maybe I won't find a job! What would I do then? Mike and I have faced many challenges in our years together. We have always made it through them with lessons learned. I am sure that in the future there will be more, but the one thing that I know I will always have is a very loving and supportive family. We stick together and for that I am truly blessed.