At around this time of year every year, when the Black Friday sales notices flood my email inbox, and I’m bombarded on Instagram with a never-ending wave of sales and discounts, I pause for a moment.
It is this time of year that I take stock of how my year has progressed, and I say a quiet Thank You to the universe for giving me yet another year on which to reflect.
Thanksgiving is a festival that we do not celebrate in Malaysia, but it is a practice that goes beyond roast turkey and pumpkin pie and Black Friday sales. While we have embraced Black Friday sales to our bosom, it makes me wonder why we don’t embrace what Thanksgiving is truly about – gratitude.
So, while you read this, pause for a moment. Close your eyes for just a few seconds, and think quickly of 3 things you are thankful and grateful for. You might be surprised to know that it won’t involve material goods 😉
This year, I have much to be thankful and grateful for. Much of it is personal, so while I am vague about it, it isn’t because I’m being evasive. It is simply because I don’t bare my soul nor share my life with the world at large 🙂
But there are 3 things I’m grateful and thankful for.
Having time to spare
My Dad had a health scare this year, followed by surgery. He is now recovering quickly and well, but it has taken up a lot of my time to be there for my family. It will go a little towards explaining my slightly longer absences on the blog and Instagram.
But what I’m most grateful and thankful for, is Time. Specifically, having the time to spare for loved ones.
As I shared in a recent post, I have taken a few steps back from the rat race that comes with having and growing a career. While it wasn’t in the most ideal of circumstances, it is something I’ve learnt to accept and embrace these past 2 years, instead of fighting it.
It is almost as if the universe had planned it this way, for what this has meant is that I am there for those who need me, when they need me most. Hospital visits. Outstation travel. Fulfilling sudden and urgent needs.
My time has never been so relaxed, and yet so full; but at this moment, I would not have it any other way. I am grateful 🙂
Being Happy
There was a quote I came across online quite recently. It said this:
The biggest lie we’re told is “Be with someone who makes you happy” The truth is, Happiness is something you create on your own. Be with someone who adds to it.
Nothing could be further from the truth of this statement.
We shouldn’t need anyone else to validate or make our own happiness or well-being. It is nice to have someone by your side who makes you smile and feel happy; but it isn’t their job, nor purpose to keep or make you happy. If that’s what you depend on to be happy, then it is easy for resentment to set in, when the honeymoon period is over or when things get rough.
Instead, find your own happiness, not depend on another for it. Do things that make you happy. Be comfortable with yourself, doing things yourself, knowing that you are the master of your own happiness. Be a self-sufficient, confident individual first.
Should the time come that someone comes along, that builds up or adds to this state of happiness and contentment, be it participating in a madcap adventure, or just quietly reflecting on life on a walk in the park; that is a bonus and something to cherish and be grateful for. If it is someone who will share your worries and anxieties, be there when the road gets bumpy, spend hours waiting with you in a cold hospital, and still make you smile with their lame jokes, that is something to be doubly grateful for.
I am 🙂
Seizing Opportunities
This year has been quite a year for opportunities, both in a personal and professional sense.
I’ve sought and had opportunities thrust on me, in ways most unexpected. For the most part, I have recognised them as what they are – a window of opportunity, whether it be to meet new people, or to hone my creative side, and seized it.
The results have surprised me, in many ways. But mostly positively. I’ve learnt to step outside my comfort zone, to open up and allow people in, and to try something new.
I’m grateful and thankful at having had these opportunities, and more important, for recognizing them as such, and carpe-ing the hell out of the diem 😀
YOU!!
Naturally, I am also thankful and grateful for YOU!
Thank you for all your support through this year and, for many of you, throughout the years that I’ve been blogging.
Thank you for reading my blog, and for following me on Instagram. If you’d like to aid me on my road to 10k followers (I need the IG story ‘swipe up’ function LOL! 😛 ) please follow me on Instagram and tell your friends to – you’d have my gratitude and hopefully some fun content 🙂
Would you like to share 3 things you’re thankful or grateful for?
You don’t have to, if it’s too personal. But it’s a good time to reflect, so pause for a moment, and reflect. We have lots to be thankful for – we just have to recognize it 🙂
Paris B
I am thankful that I earn enough money that I have comfortable home and things that I can purchase on a whim. It does not means that I earn enough to buy LV on a whim! But looking at urban poverty I am grateful I don’t fell into that category.
I am thankful I have a career that have growth. That I have opportunity to study and able to access the best mind.
Lastly, I am grateful that I have a husband that tolerates me being bratty *sometimes* and take care of the family when I am not around chasing my dream
Hi Jue, thank you for sharing what you’re thankful for. You are indeed a lucky gal and it’s nice to know that you understand and appreciate that!! 😀
I remember sending up a little prayer when you wrote about your dads health earlier. So glad to hear that he is on the mend and here’s wishing him a speedy and full recovery.
That makes me grateful for health – not just my own but that of my loved ones too.
I’ve had quite a few trying moments this year in differing areas of life. While they’re stressful and exhausting to deal with, I’m thankful for challenges because they prevent me from become jaded and stagnated as age creeps up on me. I never want to sit back and watch life move on. I want to be a part of it. And challenges are a good way of participating in life.
Finally, I realise how blessed I am to have the opportunity to travel for longer durations, experience life from a different aspect and meet new individuals who inject a fresh perspective on the world. It’s something I deeply cherish.
I haven’t commented much here this year but know that I read many of your blog posts and your sharing on Twitter and Instagram. Hope you have a good time recharging yourself as the year winds down.
Thank you Isabel, happy to report that we’re out of the woods and everyone’s buckling down at home at this time. I’m sorry to hear that you too faced challenges through last year. I hope that they’ve passed you by and that you’ve surmounted them. As much as I appreciate a challenge, I have to admit that I’m at the stage when I’m quite happy to sit on the porch and watch the world pass by, if only for a little while LOL 😀 Thank you so much for reading all my little musings even if you don’t comment. I know comments aren’t quite the thing anymore, but I always appreciate it when people do, and when they interact with me on other platforms. Stay safe!
Health – it made me more cautious and pushed me to be more active. From time to time, I still get to indulge in desserts without feeling guilty. This goes to my husband as well.
Work opportunity – the hardest part to tackle is that saying “moose on the table”. But with perseverance and hardwork with like minded people ready to challenge the status quo, the results are so rewarding.
Self-care – giving yourself time to take care of your mental state, explore some hobbies buried/forgotten, reflect in life, enjoy your version of happiness and gratitude because it will not be the same with everyone else and that’s ok.
Thanks for sharing Bee 🙂 I’m glad you’re facing your challenges head on, and appreciating them enough to be thankful for them. It’s a very matured way of thinking, and one that few have managed to accomplish 🙂
Lovely post. As the year end, I am flooded with unfinished tasks. Reading this article gave me a moment to breathe and reflect. Thank you so much for writing this.
I am thankful that my baby had been healthy throughout the year and she is growing up well. Each day is a new experience for me as a new mummy.
I am thankful for my husband and the support he gave me. He pushes and support me to be a better person. After the birth of my baby, I struggle with my studies and being a mum. Thankfully, he was there to support, or else I may have abandon my studies and just give up.
Lastly, I am thankful for my family and friends for every support and love they showered me this year. Their love may sometimes be overwhelming, but stepping back and reflect, at the end of the day, I am thankful for them.
2019 have been a hectic year and it is the year that I realised having support from the people around you are blessings. I wish you good health and prosperity in the coming new year 2020. Cheers to the festive season and to 2020.