walking next to you...

i have been sick for the past two weeks. it went from a stomach virus to a headache, to a cough, to an ear infection. and all leading up to a doctor's visit. i should be miserable right but truth be told, i'm not. i have a huge pile of papers on my desk ready to be graded and a unit exam tomorrow and i'm not feeling so hot, but my heart is full. it has something to do with this being a prisoner of hope year. i decided that even though it would be hard, i was going to give myself over to hope. and from that, i have been exposed to this new kind of gratitude. actually living with a heart of gratitude. bad things are always going to happen. there will always be bad people in the world. but it is in those realities that gratitude and hope become more and more real. it is in those uglynesses of life that the gifts surface and shine and become real. and we hold on and appreciate on a deeper level.
i can't wait to feel better. i can't wait to grade my papers. i can't wait to give this test...my students will show it who's boss:) i am so grateful. grateful that I have a God who has been faithful, is faithful, and will continue to be faithful. people will always disappoint, that's why we don't put our faith in people.