I have a little book, in which I record the small happinesses of each day. It started a dozen years ago when my life was miserable, as a way of ending my days with thankfulness instead of bitterness. The misery has long since passed, but the habit of searching for and preserving morsels of goodness remains.
I write a few words in my little book each night, and publish them once a year. In so doing, I find a perspective that eludes me when I am absorbed in the minutia of my jam-packed life.
Here, then, is my 2018 Gratitude list. It’s been an epic year:
- catching the bus
- luggage straps
- travel savvy
- sun in Gibraltar
- packing light
- electric blankets
- borrowed change
- tomorrow’s not Tuesday
- neither is tomorrow
- early bedtimes
- Zumba endorphins
- best friends are always best friends
- a blanket-djellaba
- kids say cute things
- even ornery 5th Grade boys can be turned from the dark side
- with a little recorder magic
- it doesn’t take long to eat a pizza
- sun on the clothesline
- disturbing books
- quietness
- uneventful driving
- books
- noodles
- paycheques
- not needing my purse for the drive home
- small connections
- administrators in pyjamas
- options
- recorder season ends soon
- successful fires
- the goats are learning
- and so are the sheep
- despite their constant bleating
- oranges
- heaters
- sufficient sleep
- two nights in a row
- meat loaf and cream puffs
- the end of HOT CROSS BUNS
- roller blade resuscitation
- people who drive me to parties
- and drill holes in walls
- wheels
- cute raingear
- JL is taking over
- pesto
- staff meetings that double as dinner
- not locking myself out of my classroom
- decisions that can wait until tomorrow
- mug shots
- pleasant Thursdays
- wheels (again)
- so many homes
- blankets
- rest
- sweaters and scarves
- an open circle
- attending to the spirit
- humour
- a Mazda 5 with heated seats
- useful information
- astute observations
- Nick can figure things out
- whatever choice I make will be okay
- looking like myself again
- the settledness of having chosen
- home
- health
- heated seats
- seeing Nathan and Jocelyn and Charmaine
- eating too much sugar
- relaxing
- cozy family time
- being okay with things as they are
- being excited about the future
- believing just a little bit
- contact
- literature
- a full family
- Spanish hot chocolate
- Star Wars fun
- a blessed life
- bacon with Nathan
- electronic communication
- seniors’ discounts
- pockets
- puzzles
- Canada post
- Twister dodgeball in the snow
- Dutch pancakes with Joc
- a gentle release
- and a warm return
- friends here and there
- January rollerblading
- help with demolding
- taking it easy
- soup with the Unruhs
- being wanted
- easy fires
- winning things
- prep time
- French time
- time to reflect
- French Murdoch
- Judy’s salad
- Judy’s second salad
- Lu. Everything about Lu.
- back to Zumba
- easy meetings
- peppermint cookies
- linguistic laughter
- exercise
- days that end
- not feeling inadequate
- Egyptian yoga
- direct questions and answers
- rainboots
- getting the laundry before it poured
- getting home
- mac & cheese
- the parts of the day when I was by myself
- L’s alphabet squares
- admin I can trust
- SO grateful for my admin
- not driving into the city tonight
- fours and fives
- good humour
- three consecutive good days
- I matter
- it’s the weekend
- lunch and scrabble with Kenza & co.
- not having a brain tumour
- art therapy success
- not being knocked over by a soccer ball while rollerblading
- colour charts, points, and the ones who enforce them
- Susie’s baking
- adequate lighting
- adequate heating
- adequate internet!
- not hitting dogs, helmets, or policemen
- finding the outdoor parking lot
- not getting a ticket
- being Canadian
- not being athletic
- the nicest choir I’ve ever had
- sometimes I can choose to read English books
- not cleaning
- courage to take risks
- tenacity
- chocolate cupcakes
- my 33-kid Carnival Choir
- Dr. Pepper
- not having to pick kids up in the MPR
- my Grecian scarf-lace
- good cheer
- accommodating teachers
- resolve
- the photocopier still worked
- I had emergency hard copies
- and a scantron app
- not going into the city
- approaching mastery of the subjunctive
- j’espère
- staying dry
- keen kids
- I don’t have to know everything today
- I made a decision
- fleece upon fleece
- clean laundry
- feeling at ease
- extending mercy
- eased expectations
- sun after a week of rain
- upswings
- energy
- optimism
- TEDiscussions
- English-speaking thinkers
- finding the Sketchers store, if not the footwear
- une grasse matinée
- efficacious hair dye
- efficacious D.P.
- the part of my day before the kids came
- the part of my day after the kids left
- a rollerblade buffer
- remembering French words
- not having awkward meetings
- hot chocolate at breakfast
- salad at lunch
- kind words
- a calm mind
- feeling strong
- independent
- articulate
- confident
- eventually weird dates end
- and anyhow at least I didn’t spend my b-day alone
- warm clothes
- smart friends
- half-plans
- some 2nd grade victories
- costume progress
- guards and walls
- the talking list
- D A N I E L L E
- I have found my trusting heart
- GWA is a caring place
- I work for amazing people
- my bed is only one minute from my classroom
- successful days
- good doctors
- good French
- Careem (the app, not the guy)
- language school
- homestays
- rides to the bus stop
- not getting lost
- Temple Neuf
- grammar book heaven
- marjane support group
- warm air and sunshine
- my choir knows its songs
- good Tuesdays
- kids who sing in tune
- finding a class set of giant blue flags
- teachers who stay
- cuckoos who cuckoo
- feeling calm and in control
- Paula, who organizes things
- field and MPR time with the flags
- cute cuckoos
- feeling competent
- things are coming together
- crises are being averted
- all is well
- maintaining sufficient energy until 5:30
- all is under control
- concert set-up is done
- groceries are done
- my BB is coming!
- dry laundry
- getting up earlier than necessary
- really big naps
- solitude
- smooth rehearsals
- smooth admin
- diversions
- Paula, the superwoman saviour of the day
- night
- wise counsel
- calm insides
- going up
- concert #1: a roaring success
- positive feedback
- back to grammar
- downtime
- restedness
- grammar is quiet
- French is fun
- still fun
- it’s the grammar
- and I love not being stressed out about work
- a concert is just a concert, after all
- I must always remember to be thankful for the teachers who do show up
- the option of having veggies instead of fries
- a machine that gives hope
- successful wire transfers
- libraries, books, lectures, discussion, thinking
- finally getting to the pharmacy
- not panicking
- sometimes I clean my room
- I love my students
- headache helps
- ravioli
- not having choir
- remembering things
- and forgetting others
- sound engineers
- nightmares that don’t come true
- other people’s capable hands
- ho hum
- only two people signed up for my recorder group
- liberating my car, with ease
- and perhaps my pen as well
- leaving events early
- events where I can talk to only one person
- closing my door to the world
- kids who don’t show up for recorder practice
- new teachers!
- rejecting rejecters
- sockless yoga
- skipping zumba last week
- Susie’s pizza
- brave kids
- four recorders, yoga, and a French dinner!
- managing my Friday afternoon flu
- good parking spots
- a door that closes
- people to eat burgers with
- kids who practice
- relativism
- as in, my pronunciation is quite good compared to that of other anglophones
- also, I’m thankful for a cheery house
- science party leftovers
- thinking ahead
- doing things well
- my Casasawt family
- my eager students
- and my bff!
- tolerable recorders
- skipping zumba again
- getting into gradebook
- a nice walk
- a nice bed
- feeling better
- being early
- getting better at reading aloud
- enjoying Grade 8 French class
- translation services
- files that are ready
- my students can read music!
- salad doesn’t get cold
- getting the choir stuff done
- there are worse ways to lose $300
- at least my expenses are low
- and I have choir help!
- green lanterns
- figuring out certain things about taxes
- finishing annoying tasks
- long-awaited pardon
- bosom buddies
- people help me with things when they feel too overwhelming for me
- not being in charge of parent night
- kids who learn things
- I saved two musical lives today
- *locked doors*
- the internet, which helps me solve my internet problems
- extra chocolate
- cancelled yoga
- calm children
- kids who can sing
- hopeful friendships
- fun with blogs
- choir help (again) (and again)
- and more choir help
- not needing to be perfect
- (right?)
- an extra tuna sandwich
- three bowls of cereal = fuel for a day
- choirs can re-start the heart
- my friends are safe
- it was not me
- coming out of it
- declining stress levels
- mall fun
- French fun
- purple powa play
- FINDING THE PARKING PASS ON THE GROUND
- thereby escaping Morocco Mall
- DEVAN BROUGHT ME LEMONS
- at least the posset was a hit
- good ideas
- short workdays
- the muse
- and those who care about it
- so many encouraging words
- up from the grave she arose
- support
- making decisions
- having choices
- meeting friendly people
- 911
- pampering
- people who care about other people
- short sleeves
- F3s
- little hens and roosters
- small conversations
- receptiveness
- watermelon
- easy errands
- a lounge chair in the sun
- community
- hair dye
- moments of sunning
- realizing it’s a different day of the week than I thought it was
- getting to work super-early
- decent sunsets
- the parts of the track that are not littered with rubber
- the kids who got the message
- cinnamon rolls
- new days
- fresh starts
- hair hope
- I can cleep now
- meeting irritants with good humour
- flexible thinking
- 35-minute classes
- when social functions end
- a pretty purple blanket
- successful bank and pharmacy runs
- I don’t fast
- reasonable rehearsals
- good-bye, 5th grade
- smooth transactions
- no more meaningless promotion rituals
- le fin d’année
- orange juice
- fiction
- a decent haircut
- gay men with man-buns
- being a little less lonely than yesterday
- decathalon deals
- red make-up
- drum circle help
- nearly uneventful errands
- zumba helps me dance
- so does wine
- somehow I got invited
- worktime in my classroom
- being excited about something
- last day wine
- finding the signatures and the post-it note
- onward
- Ilyas does house calls
- it was my old phone that was stolen
- not my real one
- Find my iPhone found my iPhone so I didn’t have to
- Good people tried to help
- I made it to the airport, through the endless, stinky lines
- and now I am in the promised land
- with wine
- safe roads
- magnificent mountains
- supermarchés
- wonderful hostesses
- perfect farms
- finding Michel!
- finding the cave
- finding the village
- finding the farm
- *not throwing up while paragliding*
- yellow paint
- funky evening wear
- hiking gear
- kindness
- gloves
- climbing
- cow evasion
- plans
- bandaids
- food
- DP
- not living in a hell hole
- the guy who told me where to put the car
- the guy who helped me find my hotel
- not having any of my suitcases stolen
- meeting interesting people
- being thought worthy of the advanced group
- new friends
- the cow exposé saved the day
- party clothes
- rescuing my hat
- a new friend for my collection
- UBER
- a true day of rest
- progress
- wine on the balcony with Rita and Deborah
- pleasant social evenings
- finally figuring out my camera
- feeling too tired to care about making mistakes
- snorkeling isn’t scuba diving
- and swimming isn’t snorkeling
- a ride to the bus stop
- a vacant pool
- a cool, dry apartment
- a comfortable day
- seconds at lunch
- Rita — the coolest cat there
- reading Camus in French
- a resounding bravo
- sometimes a good cry is all that’s needed
- finishing well
- ping pong fun
- it didn’t rain
- I did the hike
- I liked the hike
- and the swims
- I caught the bus
- air conditioning
- pool fun
- Camus
- Molière
- the tests I do well on
- I have a travel buddy!
- I think my vision might be returning
- you don’t need good vision to play petanque
- being able to see again
- ditching the Turk
- finding a bakery
- renting a bicycle
- liking my teacher
- moving
- moved
- being a little bit smart again
- talking like a person
- bike paths
- old men in cafes
- bins that fit in my bicycle basket
- I am making friends
- I have found a tutor
- maybe the universe loves me after all
- everything’s delightful
- I found a friend
- when I get to blog for school
- oral victories
- having my own food
- rafting ended
- Eliane
- dinner was short
- I won’t live at this house forever
- tea
- fireworks and friendship
- asking C1 questions
- osing le monde
- moving out
- living alone
- not breaking any bones
- fruits and vegetables
- a capella kyries
- no more canicule
- soon I will go home
- 20? Really?!
- Des graves erreurs are not so grave
- What is this thing called hope?
- 80%!!!
- one down, three to go
- not quite a catastrophe
- it’s done
- skipping class to take a nap
- successful biking/shopping expedition
- (in a roundabout way)
- having a best friend in France to miss
- chez moi
- the best chez moi of all
- not feeling stressed out
- not moving into a new classroom or apartment
- not starting a new job
- having three years’ worth of scrap paper
- getting ideas
- j’ai réussi!
- I have a room of my own
- I have teeth
- I have a pool
- mid-day naps
- smart thoughts
- quick printing and laminating
- not feeling friendless
- stress-free start-ups
- good first days
- hammocks and leisure
- my job was easy again today
- I am not the only one with these dislikes
- frank conversation
- cute haircut
- cute piano students
- a comfortable hammock
- brunch bonding
- morning matinées
- going out only sometimes
- feeling friendly
- telephone competence
- playing tourist
- (staycation)
- Peterborough connections
- the world goes ’round
- progress
- confidence
- success
- rest
- today I did not have an audition
- someone eventually brought me hand sanitizer
- I found the used bookshop!
- I drive, and speak, with ease
- good conversation
- good brownies
- good books
- cute kids
- pasta Mondays
- social ease
- flight reimbursements
- reading French literature
- noodles
- back to Trent!
- with a discount!
- cat duets
- changing the butagaz
- being just right
- I’m just so good at my job
- post-city naps
- pumped-up tires
- warm hammock weather
- a walking buddy
- cool swims on hot days
- hammock season is extended with fleece
- sometimes I do nice things for people
- sometimes I do nice things for myself
- my job is a great thing
- re-meeting more cousins
- hot and cold running water
- art
- new cousin-friends
- safely home after a weekend on the Koehn express
- tomorrow I will not drive anywhere
- worrying about the Canary Islands is a First World Problem
- a little cabin in the woods
- three meals plus snacks
- evenings off
- not being lonely
- not being bored
- not being cold
- not being sick
- finally finishing typing this list
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