Thankful For Silver Linings

For someone who shares so much with those around, I am really a private person. I am truly one of those people that many know, but very few people truly know. In order for you to have what I am thankful for in proper context, I am going to step outside my comfort zone and share some of these things that I normally keep locked away. It is common knowledge, to those who know me that I have had numerous spinal surgeries and that for a short period last year I was on a walker and then a cane. The cane I used belonged to my grandfather, who is deceased. I was having a hard time transitioning off the cane, until I accidently left it hanging off the handle of the shopping cart at Target, but not the one in my town. It is also common knowledge that I stay at home and am the primary caregiver to my youngest son, Max, and that much of my day revolves around him. Most people know that I had a career and was making a nice salary, prior to my recent two spinal surgeries. I had short term and long term disability insurances, but what most do not know is that there was a huge gap between the two that caused some serious negative financial setbacks for my family. Now we are getting into the difficult part to share, all the stress of this has pushed my marriage to the brink, but we fought for each other. We kept most of the discord private, as not to let our anger poison our friends against one another. We are now in a better place than we have been and are more aware of each other’s stress in tough times. That timing was great because recently we found out that our health insurance premiums are taking a huge increase, that my financial aid was $1,300 short off covering tuition, and several other bills where increasing. Oh and we had a few back taxes, from some prior poor decisions when we did some locum tenems work. I shared all of these things I do not normally share, so that you may understand why I am so happy and excited that I recently won a lottery jackpot, that I will see very little of. It is by no means making me rich, but it is removing many burdens. It is buying me time to finish school next semester and return to the work force.

 
This video is from the youtube account of the Virginia Lottery, who owns all rights to the video

I am also truly thankful for the normal things people express gratitude for, this time of year. My family, my friends, a roof above my head, anyone that knows me knows that I am thankful for those. I am not happy that my back was injured at a young age, but I am happy for some of the paths my life went down as a result. If I had not injured my back the first time, I probably would not have gone to x-ray school and moved to Virginia. Then I would not have met my beautiful bride, which means no Max. I am thankful for a rocky first marriage, because it resulted in three beautiful children. If I had not had surgeries three and four on my spine, I would not have made the decision to stay at home parent, but situation forced me into that role. I am thankful for that experience. I shared my unusual tale of thanks to remind you that even the bad things in life can have positives. Do not dwell on the negative of your life, though we all do at times, but make your focus the positives that come from or will come from your situation.