Toward the end of last year, so many sad things happened, that my friend and I were discussing how we couldn’t take it anymore. I can’t go into detail because they are not my stories to tell, but it was a lot.

Then something happened in my own life that could have sealed my depression dunktank and made me drown. Instead, I choose to look for the good and not be mired down in sorrow. Here are some of the things that have kept me afloat:

• Being around my kids – the blindingly bright light of my life.
• PJ
• Driving through my home town and being bombarded with great memories.
• Getting to hug my friend who has always been more like family and telling her I love her.
• Talking to that same friend’s kids who are the age she and I were when we first met.
• Meeting the first person I don’t personally know who recognized me from my blog! 🤯
• Seeing old friends and family and catching up.
• My friend who keeps me in constant supply of the most delicious homemade sourdough bread, delivered straight to my door. I already knew she was a saint but this is just above and beyond!
• My mother’s cooking that saves any bad day.
• My father’s butchering of the English language.
• The dark sense of humor I share with my Biff.
• Low-key birthday celebrations. This is me hugging PJ after he blew out the candle on his Entenmann’s chocolate donut (his request). No gifts, just handmade cards from the boys.

I read a Winston Churchill quote yesterday: “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” It sparked the idea for this blog.

Bad things are always going to happen; you can choose to wallow in it, or you can look for the good and try to make your way out of it. At the very least, you will discover that there is always something to be grateful for.