Hope for the hopeless

Yesterday gave me another Thank You, Jesus moment.  Snow dusted my morning commute and the much needed moisture was a blessing.  When winter makes an appearance in my part of America, bus schedules typically get messed up, but yesterday was an exception.  My bus driver was on time and at the Park-n-Ride I caught my connecting ride to the office.  Most mornings, I prefer to catch the connecting train because of the time factor, but I wasn’t in the mood to feel bitterly cold while waiting on the train tracks. 

The bus stop is a block from the magnificent view of a structure I proudly call my workplace.  It’s a two-story building that now overlooks a huge Christmas tree that sits on what is really a circular fountain that would pump out refreshing water during the warm seasons of the year.  Little children in their swim wear always came when that fountain was at work, to bathe and splash waters on the other kids while their mothers, nannies or guardians sit nearby reading books, having a picnic, carrying conversations or just watching the childish play.  The visiting kids would usually mess up the lovely fountain view and when things got out of control, the property security on patrol would come to the rescue.  But overall, the picture always ends up like a candid snapshot of what warm weather can inspire.

Above the bus stop is the elevated train platform.  Whenever I get off the train and go down those steps, I see my work surroundings which never fail to put a smile on my face.  I’m fortunate to be going to work in a lovely, little universe.  The walk to my building is never boring because beautiful trees and gorgeous landscaping line up the pathway.  In addition, there are metal and stone sculptures to feast my eyes on.  Whoever designed this pretty picture deserves a million thanks!

Forgive me if I’m boring you with these details.  But, you see, for more than 15 years I worked in a Downtown office where wide open space is a luxury.  Today the layout has become more crowded with the construction of expensive lofts and living spaces in that area.  Buildings sit next to each other in what I see as a tight embrace and such a view I sometimes find rather suffocating.  Fast driving vehicles (spewing horrible smoke in the process) and frantically moving pedestrians (with multilingual sounds) are fixtures of the busy area and if one is looking for a nice, unhurried, peaceful walk on the street, that certainly isn’t the place to be.  People are constantly in a rush, talking loud, screaming invectives, and sometimes even forgetting their manners.

But I have to confess that Downtown was a part of my work life that brought me a very significant once-in-a-lifetime jewel-of-a-moment.  Back in those days I drove and one morning I stopped my car under the light at an intersection that was a throwing distance from the city’s historic hotel.  At that precise moment the visiting Dalai Lama happened to be going out the door and was giving his blessing to the masses gathered outside.  I was still waiting for the green light when His Holiness raised his hand to bless the people.  Through all these years I believe that due to my proximity to His Holiness, I got his blessing too! 

For that priceless encounter, I say thanks, as well as for many other awesome moments in my life.  I’m most specially grateful for my continued gainful employment.  The truth is, I vicariously suffer when I hear laid-off people’s stories about their struggles to find a job.  I feel their pain because eight years ago, I walked in their shoes.  After being a part of the work force for almost thirty years, then suddenly losing that one constant in my life just when I was so close to retirement, I felt self-esteem slowly leave me.  My spirit was at an all-time low.  If my parents didn’t show me examples of fortitude, determination and confidence while I was growing up, I don’t know where I would be today.

Parenting (by biological parents or guardians) is the world's most important job because children grow up to become the adults they turn out to be from examples they were given in their young lives.  I know that I am who I am today because of what Mom and Dad taught and showed me.  My parents are both gone now, and I thank the Good Lord for taking them to a better place, but their influence will never abandon me.  The Catholic religion I was brought up in has given me the strength and courage to face my adversities.  Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Thankfulness is a year-round tradition

Hello, I hope your day is going well.

It’s the Monday after the long 2010 Thanksgiving weekend and if you’re like many folks, you didn’t want to get up this morning and go to work.  That’s precisely how I felt until a gentle Voice (my God, no doubt!) prompted me to think grateful.  Because in this day and age where I live many hard-working people are losing their 8-to-5 existence in Corporate America.  Economic times are getting harder and harder.  The men and women carrying HELP ME cardboard signs on street corners attest to this depressing fact.  When I find the time to check on my 401(k) balance, I can’t help but feel relieved as I mentally scream, THANK YOU, JESUS!, if the amount grows even by a few hundred dollars.  You see, for a very long time now, my retirement funds had been in a yo-yo mood.  And more often than not, in the downward swing.  Hopefully, yours is performing better than mine!

Just like many of my peers, I might have to slave away in the workplace much longer than I had planned.  The great news is that being perpetually employed presents a never-ending opportunity for self-improvement and keeping abreast with ever changing technology.  Just the sheer thought will keep me forever young! 

But come to think of it, our present world could be a lot worse.  Stock values may have dropped, but at least, we know that the skies haven’t fallen, our trees still get green in spring time and flowers get to bloom in the gardens.  Growing up, I never thought that I had a green thumb, but now that I am on the brink of my golden years, I have developed a fondness for gardens.  I believe that it happened a few years after I purchased my own space where homeowners were required by the Homeowners Association to landscape their backyards.  Out of necessity, I became an occasional gardener so that I didn’t have to hire a professional who might charge me an arm and a leg.  In hindsight, I know that it was my God’s way of getting me close to nature so that I could learn to appreciate the beauty in my neck of the woods (the garden in my small backyard).  I feel so fortunate that I can now find joy in merely looking at the fuchsia of my roses and the sweet smell from my lavenders.  Not too long ago, the tiny fruits of my red chokeberry tree added vibrant colors outside my kitchen.  Although now bare, the tree brought so much energy outside my patio in spring and summer when the birds frequently cheerily dropped by for a visit.

The truth is, keeping a positive frame of mind has been a blessing after a couple of years of depressing unemployment.  Exactly two years after my former 15-year employer forced me into “early retirement”, my current company offered me a job I never thought I would be doing as I didn’t have the qualifications for it when I answered their ad.  But because Divine Providence was involved, I found myself in a place I am really meant to be in, busy in a job I am meant to be doing!  For me, it was a MIRACLE!  Before that I had sent out hundreds of resumes and did more than a dozen face-to-face interviews.  As it turned out, the sixteenth, not the third, was the CHARM for me!  But before the job offer, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown and a panic attack because if the full-time job didn’t present itself at that time, I was likely to lose my home… and my precious sanity!

I really believe that always thinking bright during that time of morose challenges and expecting better times despite the then existing reality brought me good fortune when I most needed it.  It felt like finally harvesting the fruits of the seeds once sowed.  Perhaps I said a prayer one too many.  But I know for sure that Someone above showed me the way so that I could get to be right where I am standing now.

So if anyone out there is having a bad day… or feeling that you’re not getting what you’re wishing for… please be patient.  Stay strong.  And always think positive!  This may sound easier said than done, but I've been there.  I know that no matter how gray the time of your life is at this moment, if you learn to manifest, the bright light will come at the end of the tunnel.  Say thank you, not only for getting what you’ve asked for, but more so for unanswered prayers.  Chances are, the rejection is for your own protection.

Tomorrow’s a new dawn… and with it may come so much exciting promise!