Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing
This morning my son and I attended a funeral for his best friend's Dad.
This lovely man succumbed to the effects of Alzheimer's this past weekend. A practicing physician for over fifty years, he was caring and kind. His brother in law spoke eloquently of his passion for medicine, his family and his adopted country.
The Gospel reading the family chose was from Luke: 12:27:
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Ironically, I had been thinking about these lines this morning while getting dressed. They came to me as I was journaling about all of my worldly worries; bills and expenses, people who had recently hurt me with their insensitivity and the work environment filled mean spirited attitudes.
I had been fretting about my life's purpose, wondering if I was really making a difference at work, with my kids, in the world at large.
In general I was worrying needlessly about the things that, in the end, don't really matter.
What is important is the last line: "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Where was my heart, I asked myself this morning?
My heart was residing in LOVE.
It was with the Love of my life. How blessed I have been to have found true love.
It was with my three children, how blessed to have raised such beautiful, smart, healthy and caring kids.
It was with my extended family. I am blessed to still have both my Mom and Dad, healthy and active, and a large family of brothers, sisters, in laws, nieces and nephews.
It was with my sweet cat. My shelter kitty who loves me unconditionally and who fills me with much joy.
No more worries, at least not about the stuff that doesn't matter.
I can't promise I won't worry about my loved ones.
I'm digesting the changes in my life, and sometimes it gives me heartburn.”
About Annette
I grew up with five siblings in a working class neighborhood outside Washington, D.C. I have been writing or telling stories in some form or another for many years. As my old life was dismantled, I found journal writing and later blogging to be the release I...
Connections
Causes Annette Talbert Supports
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, RIF (Reading is Fundamental),
Hands On Foundation, Dignity U Wear, Girls, Inc.
Annette’s Favorite Books
To Kill a Mockingbird, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Jane Eyre, The Story of Seabiscuit, The Diaries of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Among Schoolchildren, Narnia Series...
Annette, What a blessing that
Annette, What a blessing that you were thinking of those words and here they found you. Thanks for sharing with us. It reinforces what really matters. I’m happy that you have love and happiness in your life.
A lighthearted, yet true quote from my daily Church Signs calendar seems fitting: “The King of Hearts enables one to play with a full deck.”
The way things are
If we trust that things are the way they are supposed to be--what peace! And nothing is more precious than peace.
It doesn't mean sitting back and relaxing, expecting things will take care of themselves. But it does mean that if you work hard at something, and it doesn't turn out as successfully as you had hoped, you can still find peace.
"Count your blessings" has a lot of meaning. What joys we are given each day, if we remember to notice them. Our loved ones, our pets, the place we live, and much more. So glad you know that, Annette.
Peace be with you.