this page turned with gladness

Don't take this personally, 2009, but I am oh, so glad to see you go. It's not your fault, you were simply the vehicle by which we measured the days that failed to live up to our hopes, dreams and expectations. That may make me sound a bit negative, but I prefer to see it as realistic. I call 'em as I see 'em. This year has pummeled us with hurts and disappointments, and catapulted us into hard, thin times. To hell with building character. Character is no match for the need to feel loved, the desire to be successful, or the benefit of a life intact. Character doesn't pay the bills or heal a broken heart. And for the record, it's a challenge to work toward paying bills when your heart is broken. Just sayin'.

But lest you think that all I want to do is spit on the year let me counter that impression with what I DO celebrate.

• There's McKinlee. Yes, she's still peeing every 2o minutes, but we had a run of luck not long ago when she went three days without an accident. Yay, McKinlee!!! Turns out that if you're mindful of her wee bladder you can prevent a few of those puddles by taking her out regularly. I know, this is obvious. She's a love, that little girl. Full of energy, cute as a button, occasionally cuddly and always ready to love on you. Yeah, we're going to keep her.
• There's Junior and Trisha. They are the bright spot of our life and a breath of promise. Love those two to pieces and so, so grateful that they are my family.
• There's Epiphany. There are still a whole lot of challenges ahead for this little church, but we did some good and momentous things in 2009. We are finding our compass, which is like having our own personal sheepdog to keep us where we need to be. That's sort of a biblical metaphor if you think about it.
• There's my expanded blog world and the people I have come to know through it. RevGals has been an anchor of stability and a web of connection. Several of those amazing women have become staples of my grounding and the glimpses they offer into their lives and ministry encourage and console me. Through them I found others: Kim, Diane and Cake Wrecks, to name a few.
• There's a collection of TV shows that have distracted me and made me laugh or offered me brain food. Reruns of "Burn Notice" are on as I type. How can you not love a series whose hero asks his girlfriend, "Fee, do you have any explosives?" and she replies, "I'll pretend you didn't ask me that."

My point is this. The year might have been crap. No, that would be Crap. But I continue to laugh, love, hope and have positive thoughts. And occasionally I get some things done that I set out to do. My prayer is that 2010 will prove more edifying, satisfying, and pleasant. And if I'm really lucky I'll overcome whatever gets in the way of writing thank you notes.