Blessings

I am blessed beyond belief. I was thinking just that on the 4th of July and it actually occurred to me not once, but twice on that day. I first thought of it while I was sitting at my brother and sister-in-law's house. It was a small group, just them, my Aunt and me but it was a gorgeous day and we were sitting outside on their beautiful, breezy, deck with plates full of food and our refreshing cucumber water. I always joke with my sister-in-law that their yard is like sitting in Eden. While my yard has patches of beauty here and there, their grass is perfectly manicured and the yard is filled with flora and fauna everywhere. Even the birds and butterflies seem happier in their yard then in mine. Amidst the beauty of the day and our surroundings, though, our banter turned to the loss of a beloved Uncle, who will be laid to rest this Saturday. My Aunt, who buried her own husband a few years back, remarked on how even though we have had tremendous loss, horrible illnesses and some incredibly difficult things happen, all in all, we have had a good life. She is right. Many families that experience much less things then we have are broken apart and alienated. Our core family is as thick as thieves. Help and love is just a phone call, or short walk, away. Having a family that loves you unconditionally like that, is an incredible blessing.

The other time it occurred to me was later in the evening when the (cherry) bombs were bursting in air and the sounds of M-80's shook my house as they exploded in the neighborhood. I had "A Capitol Fourth" on the television and watched the gathered crowd have a blast of a time and then watched as the fireworks did the same. I then turned on the Macy*s fireworks, that were on (I think) channel 4, which were also amazing. The fireworks reminded me of the innocent people in France, last year, that were watching their own fireworks in celebration of Bastille Day in Nice. I thought of it as a large boom rattled my windows, coincidentally, thus making its mark in my psyche even more.  I had nothing to worry about. I knew the sounds around me were benign mini-celebrations of the independence of our country and I turned my attention, once again, to the sea of military faces present at the Macy*s display. At the end of it all, I silently thanked God. It was a blessing that millions of people had a beautiful and peaceful celebration and were safe. It is because of every branch of our incredible military, the NYPD, the MPDC and all of the other local police departments, that we could gather together and then return safe and sound to our homes that night. I am blessed because I live in THE greatest country in the world. I am protected by THE greatest police departments in the world and I am safe because of THE greatest military in the world. So, my friends, are you.

May God bless all of our armed forces and may He bless the United States of America.

Have a peaceful week,

Mare