There is Beauty All Around

The day after Legoland Ryan got sick.  And then a day and a half later Evan got sick.  And then a day and a half after that I got sick.  I do not do well with illness.  I don't like it when my kids are sick but I have the worst immune system in our little family and for some reason, when I get sick I feel like I am dying.  DYYYYYING.  I do realize that I am, not in fact actually dying.  But that's what it feels like.  We all had this cold that produced a nasty cough and a high fever.  For Ryan it lasted about three days.  For Evan it lasted about 5 and for me about 5 as well.  Three of those days were so bad for me that I didn't hardly get off the couch.  I even called Colin and asked him to come home and take care of me and the boys, on a Wednesday.  I never do that.  It was bad.  

My point is, I had a really time coming out of this illness and I don't feel like I've returned to my normal self yet.  The twelve days inside my apartment all cooped up without the ability to do anything really threw me in to a funk.  

I've been seeing so much negativity lately and it's really getting me down.  There are people in this world who suffer tragedies MUCH worse than a little cold.  And I wonder how on earth they have the strength to endure such challenges.  I won't go into the details of the personal lives of those around me, if you want to know of the negativity in the world, all you have to do is turn on the TV and watch your local six o'clock news.  

Sometimes in life you just feel the weight of it all.  It comes bearing down on you and you feel as though you'll suffocate.  I have felt a little bit like this recently.  

And then yesterday I went for a little walk.  There was a purpose in my walk but my focused changed.  I noticed a few flowers and I thought about how beautiful they were.  I realized, God is present in our lives.  He is there to send people, and things to beautify our world.  He is mindful of us.  He knows our struggles.  He knows our pain.  And he is merciful.  I realized that although there is negativity, evil, and tragedy in our world, there is also beauty.  And it is all around us.  













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