5 Things I'm Thankful For (Post-Isaac).

A visit from Mother Nature's roughest and toughest can remind you that it doesn't hurt to be grateful for the little things...like every second you have them. :-)

So on this post-Hurricane Isaac holiday and long weekend o' recovery (God BLESS America!), here are five things I'm grateful for:

1. Electricity. No need to expound.
2. Community. While it's painful (and slightly guilt-inducing) to know many are still without power or have damage to their homes and property, it is a wonderful relief to see communities band together to provide service in ways we sometimes forget exist. Since the last storm, that is. Churches sending non-perishables to those who can only get to their still flooded homes by boat. Non-profit workers buying tables full of service workers' meals at the only restaurant open in a washed out town. And the list goes on. Blessed are we.
3. Communication. I've lived through scarier, higher-category storms without knowing how my friends and relatives in Mississippi were faring, or if they were faring, but thankfully, our family had open communication lines during this storm. Phones worked, my parents' electricity stayed on, my uncle was able to get my grandmother to Tennessee before the storm reached the Gulf Coast -- my relief couldn't have been more palpable.
4. The work of my hands. To put it kindly, I'm an anxious person. So during anxious times, I've learned that keeping busy is more or less a survival mode for me. For that reason, I can't help but wonder if God led me to work in public relations so I could have meaningful work to do during and after these events. My nail chewing and hair twirling about the overall situation still occur, but at least I have a task. And it actually helps people. This is good, and I'm thankful for it -- moreso with each storm. Because apparently, unlike some, I'm not "mellowing with age." ;-)
5. Days of rest. See #1.

While I'm enjoying my power being back on and trying not to hem and haw about how to get the yard cleaned up with a bum foot, I realize these are selfish, subjective feelings, and my heart breaks for those who are dealing with everything that comes with natural disaster.

My prayers go out to all dealing with the aftermath of this storm, as well as those who are still trying to overcome and learn to deal with the physical, mental and emotional toll that Hurricane Katrina put the Gulf states through seven years ago.

Mission & Prayer.

I'm working in an environment I've never experienced before -- not so much the healthcare area, but the spiritual facet. Since I'm not Catholic, I wasn't sure at first what it'd be like, but I knew from week one that it is an amazing fit for me, and a blessing to be part of.

These are some things I'm exposed to every day as I begin my work, and they provide an absolutely beautiful way to focus and remember why I'm doing what I'm doing:

Our Mission

Inspired by the vision of St. Francis of Assisi and in the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church, we extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ to God’s people, especially those most in need.


We call forth all who serve in this healthcare ministry, to share their gifts and talents to create a spirit of healing–with reverence and love for all of life, with joyfulness of spirit, and with humility and justice for all those entrusted to our care.

We are, with God’s help, a healing and spiritual presence for each other and for the communities we are privileged to serve.

And this is my favorite part of all -- the peace prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;

Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Bye Week, Part Two.

I almost included this in my last post, but decided to wait.

In many ways, this was a bye week for me aside from football.

I am changing jobs -- and could not be more excited! -- but to get to point B from point A took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. (Well, maybe not blood. Unless you count paper cuts and scrapes from hauling coolers across Lafayette Square in New Orleans.)

Today was my last day at my current job. I was excited to go there three years ago, and to tackle Community Relations, and to have the opportunity to work with communications there. But the latter never happened, and it didn't look like it was going to, and I was starting to shrivel from lack of creativity (and from too much non-creativity, which I'm very, very bad at, anyway).

So this was a bye week for me with my current job, and my current coworkers, and the physical location I've worked at since I moved to Baton Rouge.

Kind of odd. But exciting.

And I've been realizing I have not been living up to my potential in a lot of ways -- not just with work.

So that's something I'm going to work on.  And to blog about another day.

5th Element.

Five things I'm thankful for today are:

1. Bosses who listen when you say you need help.

2. Modern medicine.

3. Hair that allows for variety. (Curly, straight, ponytail, down, up, pigtails, etc.)

4. Friends in ALL places.

5. Books.

Bloggin' gone bad.

I've been slacking on my blogging lately. But an acquaintance of mine has been doing just the opposite -- she's vowed to blog EVERY DAY.

Since Crawfish Boil season is upon me (at work, my busiest time of the year ever), I won't be blogging every day by any means, but I might try a little harder to release some of this pent-up creativity more often.

Cinco de Julio.

Five things I'm grateful for today are:

1. A job that allows me to work hard, play hard (on my off time), and enjoy both...even on some Mondays. :-)

2. Peanut butter.

3. Boot camp. I know I have griped about it incessantly for the past 8 weeks, but I think I'm gonna miss the stinkin' class, after all.

4. Living in part of the world, country and region that is relatively unaffected by the recession. The more I talk to friends in other (and literally higher, more northern) places, the more I realize how fortunate I am to be in BR, where some prices have gone up and some jobs are in jeopardy, but at least peeps are able to get out and about with smiles on their faces and plans on their agendas.

5. Nephews, their loose and lost teeth, and their plans to whip their aunts into shape via the Wii (and boundless, 5-year-old energy) during upcoming visits. :-)