01/01/2023
Beautiful Flower Snobs-
HOPE is the word we want to use as we reflect on this year.
We want to say a quick farewell to some of the heartbreak, stress, chaos and loss that happened in this last 365 days:
-Flood from a leaky air conditioner
-Some of us are still working through the devastation of people lost too soon.
-Flood from a busted pipe
canceled weddings from covid
-5 catalytic converters stolen all from personal and work vehicles
-several terrifying wrecks
-Friends have passed
-Employees came and left
-Some of us have been overwhelmed with our battles with mental health.
-A couple lost jobs this year
-One of us lost their home
-Kids moved out and broke our heart
-One of us lost a grandchild
-Kids left for college
-Multiple hospital stays due to a serious illness.
-Heartbreaks.
-Fires and evacuations,
-Several of our pets crossed the rainbow bridge
-One of us lost a child
-One of us lost a parent
-Some of us had marriages end.
-A couple of us have been ousted by our “families” and spoken to horribly.
-A few of us lost ourselves in the search for love and belonging
-A couple have been completely betrayed by people that they love
Some of the above things listed are heavy, awful…some are just annoying and inconvenient… but EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. (even the tragedies) have had positive things come from them.
The one thing that did not leave any of us, however, is HOPE.
Hope for a better future, a change in ourselves, a brighter outlook for the next year, day, or even second. A CONSISTENT search for the silver linings in life is HOPE. We have made it through every single one of these things because of it.
In the losses came friendship, or faith in a higher power. Comfort flew in and gave us support in the form of hugs and company. Words of wisdom and support and guidance were given.
Unheard stories were told in honor of those we lost, and they brought back locked up memories and laughter. Tears were shed, but returned in smiles. This all derived from HOPE.
In the struggles, we found that we CAN DO BIGGER THINGS. We can survive and even CONQUER our fear. We can make it through this BIG, SCARY ass world and BE MORE.
We gained a measure of confidence that we didn't know was possible. We were pushed out of our comfort zones and effing strived. STRIVED!
Through the heartbreak, the strife, we learned to adjust, pivot, and look inside ourselves for strength, and sometimes that “strength” is being okay with leaning on a friend. Sometimes it is being the shoulder to cry on. Strength is sometimes accepting that you can’t handle everything alone and that help that is being offered. It is OKAY to not do everything alone.
It is Trust. It is trust in the possibilities you hold in your hand, brain and heart. Trust in the signs the universe is giving you. And FOR GOD’S SAKES, LISTEN! Listen to your gut, and the universe. KEEP YOUR HOPE. It is the only thing that keeps us going. So many of you show us that hope is what this life is about.
“It’s Better to fight and fall than to live without hope.” -Viking Proverb-
