Semicolon Stories

Semicolon Thankfulness Post

December 4, 2011 at 11:41 pm Danielle B Leave a comment

If you ever invite Mike and me somewhere, you can plan on the “Burgess 15.” Sometimes we’ll surprise you and arrive closer to the start time, but typically (at least if we need to arrive together, and especially with Mae), we run a little tardy.

So in true fashion, I thought I’d do a thankfulness post. My friend Luckie Leah was a rock star and posted one reason she was thankful each day of November. Many other buds posted on Facebook throughout the month. And while I’m way to all-over-the-place to actually stick with something like that, I thought I’d do it in our traditional Burgess fashion, just a little late.

As a cancer survivor, when Thanksgiving rolls around I don’t have enough hands to count my blessings. And that was especially true this year as I sat with a busy 14-month-old and watched her annihilate my mom’s famous corn casserole recipe. She’s a perfect fit – as we all love it, too. I indeed am blessed.

While this in no way will be all-encompassing, here are several things that top my list of gratitude in 2011:

I’m thankful for God’s love.
I’ve still not totally grasped this, and I don’t think I ever will. But this year probably more than ever I’ve seen God work, watched His plans become WAY better than mine, discerned His clarity, and heard his calling.

First Mavs game!

I’m thankful for Mike and Mae.
This fall Mike & I have been together for 11 years – married almost 7 in May. Holy cow. That’s a long time. And the great thing is I still love it. He’s my best friend. We’re a good pair. Even when put to the test by becoming parents in the same amount of time it takes to microwave a TV dinner. Well, not really that fast, but it felt like it at times. But through this whole thing, we’ve been blessed with a beautiful daughter, Mae, who’s the happiest kid I’ve ever met. She loves to read. She’s on the go. Yet she still makes time to cuddle. She’s the best.

I’m thankful for our Families.
I think we seriously have the most supportive families in the universe. I know we felt it before this past year, but we feel it even more now that we have a family of our own. Our families have supported us in every way possible as we’ve transitioned into parenthood. From all of the grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts and uncles (and even great-aunts and uncles) that Mae has, we’re abundantly blessed.

I’m thankful for our open adoption.
Never thought I’d ever type that one. But indeed, it tops the list this year as something I am very thankful for. Not only has knowing Mae’s birth family been helpful in having some of her background; but it’s also brought many surprises to us – in good ways. These guys are our biggest cheerleaders. It’s like another extended family for us. They’ve taught me so much about love. And I wouldn’t have this any other way.

I’m thankful for Friends.
I know – aren’t we all, right? But seriously, I’ve got some amazing friends. This year the meaning of true friendship has been so evident to me through some buds who are technically my friends but feel more like family. They rake our leaves. They stay at our house. They’ve babysat. They pray for us. The list goes on and on. And it’s not really about what they do for us at all – it’s who they are. And we’re truly grateful.

I’m thankful for The Avenue.
The Avenue is our church home, which is really like an extension of our family. Serving with the leadership team over the past few years as been a rich experience. This year I especially felt a re-confirmation that we are in the right spot, and this church is exactly where we are to be. It allows us to serve with our gifts (Mike rocks it out on the worship team, I still keep all of the communications going), it gets us involved in serving others, and I couldn’t imagine life without such a great community.

I’m Thankful for Semicolon Communications.
Who starts a business in a down economy? This gal. But really, I felt like God was growing my business and leading me to dive in full-time this summer. And I am so grateful for this. It’s allowed me the flexibility to hang at home with Mae a few days each week. And to volunteer for the Colon Club. Through this business, I have the opportunity to be a marketing consultant for a few companies, and then be a copywriter for another. All while getting to keep first things first. Thank you Lord.

I am thankful for my health.
I’ve had a cancer-free year. All scans and tests have been clear. I’ve never been so thankful to be healthy.

Meet Beckett! He's handsome!

I’m thankful for a lot of other things, too.
I have a new nephew! We’ve got two running cars. I made some writer contacts. We vacationed to the beach. We went to a family reunion. My brother and sis-in-law came home several times from Louisiana. Oh so many things that I’m so thankful for.

So here are some list toppers for my year. I have to say, one of the best yet.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4

Entry filed under: Everything Colon, Maeby. Tags: cancer survivor, family, Thanksgiving.