“I thank my God always
concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus.” 1
Corinthians 1:4 (NKJV)
I was recently challenged by a fellow author to write
about a person I love, near the time of Valentine’s Day. And of course,
naturally those two people to describe in this manner would be my wife and
daughter, Lisa and Annabelle. In addition to adoring my two best ladies, should
I not also love the life that I have been given in the present hour? In other
words, as Christians, we could choose to love each day while the current moment
happens right now, this very minute, this very second. Taking our additional days
for granted, we journey through life, expecting another day to come tomorrow as
if no big deal. Of course, there are no guarantees that the next day will come.
With recent events in my life, I have really been
trying to appreciate my time with family and friends, or maybe even just
completing simple tasks. I get to do these things instead of thinking about
these things as a boring agenda item to knock off my to-do list. In fact, there
are talents that I possess that I even take for granted simply by the ease of
doing them. For example, I am great at school (working on my doctorate). I
write well. And I grade many assignments in an efficient, productive, positive
manner, which might take someone else much more time to do so. When you are
good at an activity, even if you find it monotonous at times (sitting at a
computer for hours), try not to take it for granted. This activity might take
someone else several hours to do what you do in a shorter amount of time.
While our daughter entered the world in August last
year, which turned out to be the best blessing ever, Lisa and I also
experienced many losses this year – two aunts, a former boss, a great uncle, a
grandmother, an uncle’s mother, another uncle’s mother, a friend’s son who we
know through church, and even some others I cannot recall right now. Some of
these loved ones suffered greatly, and while it might sound self-focused, I am
glad to be healthy. I took a walk today. I can eat good food from a grocery
store or decent restaurant. I go to the gym several days a week. I can afford
the gym membership to go work out. The blessings keep unfolding as I could
spend hours writing them down.
Perhaps these are the details we should focus our
energy on. Life is precious. Even though I work more than I would like to
sometimes, I seek to enjoy my life in case my end is soon coming. Not to say
that it is, however the days go by fast. And we have been given a chance to
live this very present moment. That is no small thing. So, while I love my
girls, I also want to make sure I love my life as it is right now.
While Valentine’s Day might be the cheesiest special
occasion of the year, if you can, try to love everything about your life
circumstances, not just one or two things. Only then will you truly be content.
Lisa and Annabelle, I love you! Happy Valentine’s Day!
-James L. Cartee, III
Here are some of the latest Annabelle photos for your viewing enjoyment.
#daddydestinations #daddy #dad #DaddiesAndDaughters #daughters #family #blog #destinations #memories #story #narrative #inspiration #JamesCartee
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