Thankful Thursday

Today is the big day. We start the two days of services culminating with the interment of my sister's body in a cemetery. Not what I wanted to be doing this week. This week I wanted to chase the totality of the solar eclipse as so many did on Monday. This week I wanted to be enjoying Tennessee barbecue and bourbon. But the plot twist of my sister's death at the beginning of the month means I have to adapt to significant set of changed circumstances.

Now I mourn in quiet and with patience while others act out their grief. I strive to be thankful for the everyday blessings to keep my world from going too far off the rails. Moms have to keep it together for everyone else. Even people who aren't your children. I'm thankful for the unseen strength that keeps me going even if I drop a detail here or there. I'm thankful that I don't have to be perfect or conform to the standards of others. There is something greater than the opinions of others by which to measure myself and there grace and mercy abound.

I don't know what this day will hold for me but I'm coming through it with my head held high and a smile on my face. Sis lived a good life. She invested her time and talents in what really matters, the hearts and minds of the people around her. I'm thankful for her life and the positive mark she made on the lives of others.

Sanchia A Callender Memorial Fund