By Shannon Williams
We all laugh at the saying “here hold my beer” meaning that something is about to happen and we need to watch or take part. We have had our share of “hold my beer” moments in the past 12 months and this past week was a big one. Just when we were starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, someone really upset Mother nature and we all know she is not to be messed with. One of the things I love about Bolivar is the respect we have for the land, the wild life and for just the wonder of nature. You cannot live here and not Love all that we have been given with the Gulf of Mexico, and the whole peninsula. We are surrounded by the beauty of it all. Just a simple drive to Galveston we see more of Mother nature and all that God has given us to enjoy than most people see in a whole year, if even that. I think because of that, we try to be grateful for it all.

Many years ago, I did a course of study in gratitude, (OK no laughs by family and friends that I must have failed the class!!). It was one of the weekend types of class that you took to try and become a better person. The class focused on “An Attitude of Gratitude” and I have tried to use what I learn still today. But what does that really mean? My notes from the class (yes, I am a paper hoarder and save many handouts from classes and workshops as far back as the early 80’s) state that “an attitude of Gratitude is a regular habit to express appreciation for all different parts of life, no matter how small.”

This past week, we all had to do without many things, so very big, like power and water and some not so big, like that hot cup of tea or coffee in the am, the morning newspaper, good ice, and the ever-important daily bath/shower and that wonderful feeling you get from being clean and not smelling. So, this week as they return, I know we are all a little more grateful for them. As we return to a full life post COVID, we will all try to be grateful for just being able to go out to eat without trying to worry if you have a mask, if they are open, or if just going out to eat will expose us to things that can really do us harm. We will all giggle as we get back on planes and cruise ships, but how long will that gratitude last?

Lewis Howes, an athlete turned motivational speaker says, “if you concentrate on what you have, you’ll always have more. If you concentrate what you don’t have, you’ll never have enough.” So how do you develop a habit being grateful? That is easy, you count your blessing, big and small and if you cannot think of any, then you play the alphabet game and start with A- My Aunt Ann, B-the Beach, C-the little bit of creativity I have been given, D- my Dad, and so on. It really is fun to do as a group or with your family, it really makes you think.

This year before my birthday, I was praying for all that I had been given in life that I was grateful for; that was easy, as I truly have been blessed. One of the things I tried to do was to be grateful for me, and to look at the things that make me, the things I felt I had accomplished in my life. It was much easier to think of the people in my life who have helped me do all of those things and be grateful for them, but the goal was to learn to appreciate myself, so that the ability to see things more positively will grow. That is always a little harder. But it really is a good habit to help with being grateful.

So, I wish for us all that we keep counting our blessings and work on that Attitude of Gratitude to last as we return to the joys of power, water and being with people in person.