31 Reasons to be Thankful for this January 2014

I started the gratitude project this year and I was able to  complete the first month!

This month has been a challenging one with the low pressure area hovering over us and finally tropical depression Agaton made its way submerging the city in flood and we were not spared. And as I am writing this one, tropical storm Basyang has just made landfall in Siargao. We are under signal number 1. It rained earlier but it was not something alarming. Thank you, God!

Despite the challenges, I still have 31 reasons to be thankful for.

1. Gift of Family.  I may be single, orphaned and an only child but I am not lonely. I spent the afternoon in a relative’s house for New Year lunch. We had a good time catching up. It has been awhile since we last had a get-together.

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2. Digital photos. Whenever I want to recall something, I looked through my photos and memories come flooding in. It is easier to keep track of what happened at a particular moment in time.

3. Opportunity to hear mass. I always say that I am not religious. I am not one of those people regularly attend first Friday mass. My friend, Mitzi, invited to me go with her.  The priest talked about being grateful instead of complaining a lot. He said something about not being too obsessed about living a perfect life. God will fill what we do not have.

4. Chat time with friends. I am not really a sociable person but, online, I can be ‘talkative’. I am grateful for friends who take time to chat with me and catch up.

5. New ideas. I found a tutorial on how to make a camera bag. My aunt was quick to measure my camera and create a gameplan. We have not yet made the project because I have not bought the materials. Soon, perhaps.

6. Little surprises.  My cousin, Arvin, bought me “chicharon bulaklak”. He said it was his Christmas gift for me. Yummy!

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7. The reminder to work harder. I started a new investment stream so I am forcing myself to save more.

8. Opportunity to travel cheap.  I booked a trip for May. I will be traveling with friends I have not seen in 20 years. I am excited.

9. Good bargain.  CDO ham was one sale! Buy one-take one!

10.  Favor. I prayed for something and God granted it.

11. Online freebies. I got the Pantene kit from ilovebdj.com from the mail. Yay!

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12. Happy smiles. My friend tagged me along to visit an orphanage. It was heartwarming to see genuine smiles from kids’ faces.

13. Energy to finish a task. When I am tired, I rest. This time, I pushed a little more.

14. Time management. I had a trip the following day so I needed to finish some tasks.  It helps to list down tasks and tick them off as I complete them.

15. No motion sickness. A four-hour land travel usually makes me dizzy.  I usually take Bonamine. This time I did not and I did not vomit.

16. Productive day. We accomplished what we wanted to accomplish for the day. Even with the low pressure area looming, we were still dry.

17.  Safety. Butuan was in the news for heavy rains. My ceiling was showing signs of succumbing to the rain. Thank God! I was safe and dry.

18. Work opportunities. 

19. No flooding. There was still heavy raining and floods did not enter the home but we already moved the furniture.

20. Acceptance. The day before we thought the flood will not enter the house. It did. Flights were cancelled. Trip was postponed.

21. Proactive aunt. (More like OC!)  When the flood receded, we immediately cleaned it up. My aunt got busy with my floors.  In less than 24 hours since the flood waters entered the home, we were able to clean it up.

22. Normalcy. We are slowly getting back  on our feet. I was able to put in some work after days of flooding.

23. Clean garage. The water has receded from the garage. Street was still flooded. We used the flood water to remove the mud that accumulated in the garage. Lifting buckets of water was my core exercise.

24. Unexpected call. Thank you for the thoughtfulness of others. A simple phone call made my day.

25. Friendship.  We were able to help my friend clean her room after the flooding.

26. Creativity. Thanks to my aunt for rearranging my living room. It looked as if Agaton never happened.

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27. Glamourbox. This is the first time I subscribed to this box. It came just when I needed some pampering after all the backbreaking work cleaning after the flood.
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28. Restraint. Sometimes we need to pause. There are things not worth the effort.

29. Bearable queue. I was sent on an errand to pay my aunt’s SSS premium. The line was long but it was bearable because I saw a friend and we chatted while waiting for our turn.

30. Ally. Sometimes when emotions get the better of you, it helps to have an ally who has your back.

31. Another New Year! It is the Lunar New Year. My friend said that it is an opportunity to reset resolutions. Ha!

How was your January?

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