Gratitude Post for September 2022

Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift.

 It liberates us from the prison of self-pre occupation. John Ortberg

It’s a joy to write this post - reliving happy moments bringing in me the enthusiasm and energy, which is important in life – helps in focusing on the positive, and keeps me  grateful. Here are some of things I am grateful for:

The session I facilitated on Mental Health with reference to bullying with the high school students, added meaning to my work. I enjoyed listening to the session about how bullying can have a lasting impact on one’s life, hence so important that we say NO to bullying  and encourage everyone around s us to be sensitive about this important aspect in life.

I am happy to publish two papers in the peer reviewed journal, as a part of my PhD work. Its always a great feeling to see oneself progress academically and a sense of fulfillment that what once was a difficult task does not seem so tough any more as one keeps pushing the boundaries to believe that everything is possible to those who trust in the Divine as well themselves.

This is a special month for us as a family as we celebrate the birthday of our daughter Maria Dorothy and it’s a joy to see her grow and take responsibility. We start thinking about it much in advance and plan the menu and help her with getting the best. This year she turned 21 years old and completed her graduation and there’s so much to be grateful for and I thank the Lord for having kept her safe, secure in good health and helped her in every challenge for the last 20 years of her life...

I am grateful for the gift of her in my life and for all the joy she brings to me and David. She’s truly a gift to us and a constant reminder that God loves us and is with us all the time in everything we do.. it’s a blessing to have a daughter who is not only caring but mature and responsible, and I am grateful to God for she is an answer to my prayer…

The September month is full of birthdays not just Dorothy but also David's niece Diana who celebrated her 10^th birthday, then there was my Nephew‘s child Tabitha who celebrated her 11^th birthday and my friend’s daughter Arushi who celebrated 16^th birthday and another lovely child known to us for many years who celebrated 11^th birthday.. I am glad to be associated with so many more Virgos who are beautiful and sensitive

I am grateful for the friends who helped us get a different kind of breakfast on Dorothy’s birthday. Dorothy wanted to have Neer Dosa with mutton stew – she tagged me the recipe and I went ahead to experiment and luckily she liked it J but neer dosa I was finding it a challenge as I did not have the mold. Thanks to David’s friends who helped us connect with a tiffin centre run by the malayali family in our area and who are experts in preparing  Kerala food, so we got the neer dosa and I made the mutton stew for breakfast and everyone loved it.

This month the weather was very windy, stormy and raining – we had heavy rains on and off and it was funny that at one part of the city it was pouring and another part of the city completely dry. There was lightening and thunder too and I stood at my window from my centre and watched the downpour. It was such a heavy rains leaving the roads cleansed and the making the campus completely green and vibrant.

I am glad that I and Dorothy could attend the South East Region Pre Convention in the city for two days in this month. It was a lovely experience for two days, breaking away from our routine. It was a learning experience, meeting delegates from other regions, interacting with them and also learning from one another was a great feeling. I am grateful for these experiences…  I was glad that Dorothy was busy and took an active part. I was with my friends learning and enjoying the company.

This month is also special for us as a family as the 8^th of September, we celebrate the birthday of Mother Mary, the mother of Jesus and being the Marian devotee, we named Maria Dorothy, we used to be particular about visiting the shrine and spending time praying and also socializing, now with time we realise that its getting tougher with crowds thronging and the weather not being  supportive we decided to visit the following week.

The state declared holiday for one of the Saturdays celebrating National Integration Day in the city so all the institutions were closed. We took that holiday as an opportunity and visited the shrine and it was a peaceful experience as the church was still decked up beautifully, and few of the devotees were still coming but there was no crowd. It was such a pleasure for us to sit quiet and pray and spend some time in the chapel as a family and do nothing enjoying the silence and quietness that lifts hearts in prayer. After which we visited our friend Sr Joshina a religious nun who is associated with our family for more than 3 decades, she was so happy to meet us, for me it was always a great experience. Sr Joshina reminds me of my sister who was a nun, but no more and somehow we have kept in touch with this sister after my sister’s death.

We came back home happy and David bought some meat on the way, also picked up fruits and ice cream – he was quick to make spicy mutton for us. I helped him in the kitchen and it was a sumptuous lunch and I am grateful we have abundance of food on our tables enough  share with another family too J – it’s a blessing that we have never gone to bed hungry.

This month I am grateful that I could make some time to watch a movie with my daughter and friend- a Telugu classic& sweet love story by name Seetharaman which was good and I loved watching. I kept listening to the soulful music almost every day and it is such a pleasant experience to listen to the songs that is so warm and touching. It’s been a long time since I saw a beautiful movie like Seetharaman –and the theater experience was simply super. 

I am happy to watch another Hindi movie called “Darling” an Indian comedy movie on domestic violence, with an amazing script, acting, screenplay with most talented actors and actresses. We watched as a family which had a strong message of how women can fight for her dignity and succeed, amidst sadness and laughter, the movie was entertaining.

I am grateful for the opportunity I had this month to talk to the Government Degree College students  on Positive Mental Health. I was glad for this opportunity as September 10 being the International Suicide Prevention day we from our centre try and spread awareness on mental health with special reference to suicide prevention. Due to the stigma attached to suicide the college wanted me to focus on Positive Mental Health. I prepared my session in such a way that I did cover aspects of Positive mental health and also focused on what can cause ill health and how do we deal when we do not know how to deal with fears, sadness and depression and provided all the information required for contact. I was surprised and happy to find myself to be the Chief Guest and was honored with bouquet and shawl. I accepted this with humility and gratitude. 

I am grateful for the invite I got from a Degree & PG college, wherein they wanted me to speak to their students (Freshers) who have just joined in especially about psychological well being and how they must take care of themselves for the coming 3 year of their degree course. After which the college wanted me to address the parents too and share few tips about their role and responsibility in helping their children complete the course. I was happy to do it as it’s always a pleasure to talk to the young ones and it keeps reminding me of my own growing up years in life and how at different stages of my life I found someone to inspire and motivate me to reach my own goals in life..

It was also an honor to address the parents of the students – this experience filled me with gratitude as I recalled my own parents and how they had supported me in my education, being a parent myself gives a new perspective and helps to understand and value what I have received in my life.. was thankful and happy to be involved in these activities.

This month I had some very serious issues to deal with – I had youngsters coming with Anxiety, Depression and Suicidal ideations and even with high level of self injuries. I had a tough time dealing with all of them, thankfully there are a lot of kind people around who are willing to help and reach out.. grateful for those who net work and collaborate with us.

This month I had slipped in the church and luckily did not fall but my ankle got twisted and by God’s grace there was no fracture, but then I could feel my nerve twisted and it was painful and I found difficult to walk properly. I am grateful that I had people around me to help and the doctor was kind and gave me some pain killer, and told me there’s nothing to worry, it will heal by it self by gentle massage and keeping the feet rested and warm.  I am grateful for David and Dorothy who were helpful and everyday massaged my leg. I am thankful for my Head at my workplace who was concerned and allowed me to rest for sometime at home. I found difficult to sit at home and do nothing J I kept myself busy and took tele counseling and updating reports and made use of the time. I am glad that my leg healed and  I am back to the routine.

I am happy and grateful that this month Dorothy for the first time was the speaker for the Quiet hour organised by the YWCA of secunderabad. Thanks to YWCA of Secunderabad for the opportunities given for the youngsters to be involved.  It was a proud moment for me when she read the bible and shared her thoughts on how she experienced God’s protection in her life. I was inspired by her reflection and thought processes.

This month I am also grateful for those friends who have been thoughtful and visited me at the Counseling centre and brought some sweets and cakes to appreciate me and let me know that they are grateful for all those moments they received help from me in different ways.

There is so much to be grateful for  in life; It’s a blessing to be Alive – with faith in the Lord and a thankful heart I welcome the month of October.

Thank you for reading my post J I would love to hear from you,

Be Blessed & Be Happy!