Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the US but it will be an ordinary day here in the Philippines. However we are going to a directors seminar with the people Daniel works with and that should be fun. I love learning new things. Tomorrow also is Mandy's birthday so I decided to tell her the things I am so thankful for.
First and foremost I am thankful for my faith in God. My faith and love for my Heavenly Father is at the very core of who I am and it helps me know that I am the daughter of a Heavenly Father who loves me and who believes in the very best of what I can become in my life. I am so grateful for my faith because it guides me in all of my values and it provides a solid foundation for me to build my life upon. I am also thankful that I believe in God enough to trust him to take my life where he wants it to go if I just put forth my very best effort to do the right things each day. Most of all I am grateful that my Heavenly Father sees the masterpiece that I can become with my life, even when I can’t always see it myself.
Second I am thankful for my immediate family. I feel like the luckiest woman in the world to be married to a husband like Daniel. He is an incredible man and he always treats me with so much kindness, patience and respect. I can truly say that he has never called me an unkind name or said harsh words to me. That in and of itself is pretty amazing as I am certain I have tried his patience many a time over the last six years of our marriage. I am also the luckiest woman in the world to be the mother of three amazing daughters and step mother of seven plus one a in heaven. They are such good human beings. They have a testimony of who they are and they live by their values. They are amazing children and I am humbled daily that I get the blessing of being their mother.
Third I am thankful for my extended family. I have an incredible mother in the world and has taught me so much in my life. She is intelligent, brave, talented and loving. She has sacrificed so much for her daughters and she has always set a phenomenal example of living by her values. In addition she gave birth to my three sisters: Liz, Vane and Mari and provided us a very fun upbringing. I love my sisters very much. We are all as different in personalities as the day is long but similar in looks. But one of them has amazing talents and I have learned so much from each of my sisters. I loved growing up with them and I love forming friendships with them as adults with our own families. I am thankful for everyone in my family.
Fourth I am thankful for my friends. I have been blessed to be surrounded with great friends in my life. My friends are as loyal and true as can be and I love them as much as I love my family. They have stood by me, they have mentored me, they have picked me up when I have down days, they have set me straight when I am in the wrong, and they have loved me through my failures as well as my successes and I am forever grateful to have them in my life.
Fifth, I am grateful for the opportunity to give back in my life. I have spent the last 45 years of my life working hard and helping my community, the hispanic community. At this time in my life I get to spend time at home spending each and every day doing something I absolutely love, reading and doing family history. I feel so incredibly blessed to be able to do that. I can’t even describe how humbling and grateful I feel.
My life has been more than I ever dreamed it could be to this point and I can’t even begin to imagine what God still has in store for me and my family in the coming years, but I know that try to be a better person every day and to do the right things that the future will be nothing short of a true masterpiece…and the same holds true for all of you…thank heavens for my faith that let’s me know that to be true!
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday this week. Enjoy your time with your loved ones. Feel thankful for every wonderful second of your time together and for every one of the blessings you have in your life. Use those blessings to make the world a better place.
“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” -W.T. Purkiser
Thank you Mandy for sharing your 24 years of life with me. Thank you for taking the time to read my blogs and to care about the life lessons I am learning and sharing. Thank you for your amazing talents as a biologist that motivate me to do better with nature in my life so I can make you proud. Thank you for the contribution you make to this world and to my life.
Have a happy birthday Mandy and a happy thanksgiving!
love,
Vero
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