A Little Dose of Gratitude

Today, I’m running behind because I started a new job last week.  I apologize for the late blog.  Along with starting a new job comes a whole new schedule in my life, a whole new way of doing things, a whole new sense of chaos.  Now, I’m a girl who can thrive in chaos sometimes, but when there is a massive amount of change in my life, I need some order.  There’s not a lot of order right now, and that’s okay.

I needed a dose of gratitude today, so I took a cue from my dear friend and critique partner Kimberly Buckner, whose blog is chock full of everyday blessings with a heavy dose of the kind of humor I love.  Check it out.

Some of you will disagree with where I found my gratitude today, and that’s okay.  Some others of you know I rarely eat candy bars or drink soda.  Lately, I even drink my sweet tea half sweet and half unsweet.  (In certain parts of my South, that’s a treason punishable by death.)  I’ve been doing the “healthier” thing for the past year, and I love it.

But there are days like today, when the stress is high and the chaos is swirling when some comfort food is not a want, it’s almost a need.  So I stopped at the store to pick up something for a friend, and I decided that today was a Mountain Dew and Snickers kind of day.  And when I cracked that cap and then took that first bite of chocolate and peanuts…  it was a soul deep sigh.  Because sometimes, you just need to do a kid thing and not think about the fat and calories and sugar and what not.  You just need a minute to be.  Believe it or not, that chocolate and Mountain Dew made me smile, look up at God and say thanks.  And, just like sometimes when He walks on the beach with me early in the morning, I think He gave me a much needed wink and smile.  Jesus walked on this earth and shared our stresses.  I’ll bet He understands that occasional need for a heavy dose of sugar, don’t you?

As Kimberly would say, “Today I am thankful for fake dyes, caramel, peanuts, chocolate and massive amounts of sugar.  Thank you God, for understanding when we need that little bit of man-made childhood joy.”  🙂

-JB