A BRIDGE TO CROSS

    

 One of the things that I like to do now that I am retired is to take the long way home when I go on errands. I call them "excursions," following meandering roads through the countryside and sometimes even through a covered bridge here and there.  I suppose that the fact that I have an app on my phone that will guide me home whenever I happen to wander too far astray makes it seem less daring, and probably much less of a true adventure. But still, it definitely feels like I'm doing something wonderfully carefree while claiming my right to enjoy life without guilt or anxiety.

     Days like that are so refreshingly joyful in subtle ways that it makes me realize just how fortunate I am at this stage of my life, having gone through a few difficult years here and there. When I say that, I am quite aware of the fact that nothing I have experienced comes even close to what some people have had to face in their lifetime.

     I know that many people have suffered excruciating pain from the loss of a loved one, illness that seemed to have come out of nowhere, homes destroyed by fire or storm, and dozens of other kinds of tragedies. Yet I have known people who have faced those times with an amazing stamina and, in some cases, even keeping a relatively positive outlook on life. That, by the way, is not meant to suggest that there is anything inappropriate about feeling extreme sadness or depression or even anger under those circumstances. As a matter of fact, it is quite normal.

     What I am wanting to say is that we all go through difficult times in different ways. But one of the things that helps us regain our balance and eventually be restored to a healthy place emotionally, spiritually, and even physically at times, are the people of our lives--family, friends, and sometimes mere acquaintances who have been there for us when the forces of life were against us.
 
     I know for myself that one of the things I want to be sure to include in my giving thanks in the upcoming Thanksgiving Day celebration is to remember all the people who have helped me in so many ways in difficult or trying times; people who said just the right things to me; people who reached out to me when I needed reassurance that I was okay; people who provided for me when I was in need. Bottom line: I want to pass through that bridge that leads from merely living on one side to deep love and appreciation for the many wonderfully supportive people of my life on the other.