Christmas Blessings in Disguise

Although I have not really been feeling Christmas like this year, I am constantly reminded of the many blessings God bestows on me daily. Material things aren't what count! The things that make the difference & are the blessings in disguise are the things we often take for granted. Those things are mainly friends & family. Christmas was wonderful. I got to spend it with my beautiful, super woman like sister, & my spirited niece & nephew.... also got to spend it with Mama & Poppy... & I got the best Christmas surprise a girl could ask for. I got to spend some much needed catching up & quality time with some friends I lost touch with when I moved. It reminded me of many things. 

She is a true inspiration & also an amazing woman. I didn't get to tell her,  however I have thought of her quite often, especially over the past year. She once told me about before her & her husband married. She knew she wouldn't marry someone who wasn't Catholic. She prayed to God & left it in His hands & he converted & years later, they have an amazing family! God knows our hearts & He will always Bless us with what we need & what is best for us. During the course of our discussions & catch up time, I mentioned how much her kids had grown & matured. =) To which she replied, she prays now that God bless them with good & holy influences & friends or if there are no good & holy influences & friends, that He give them no friends at all. I LOVE this most of all! How often do we underestimate how our influences help to shape & mold who we are as individuals?! How great is it that this is not forgotten! I am in awe of this family & that, in a sense, God has blessed me to include them as friends of mine.

I have always been a firm believer in the fact that everything happens for a reason & nothing is without purpose, unless we choose to ignore it. For instance, even our mistakes are little blessings in disguise. The mistakes may help us from doing something even worse in the future... so long as we learn from them, that is. I believe the only tragedy of a mistake is when we don't learn from it.

In any case, I digress. The point in all of this was to say that I received some truly incredible gifts/ blessings this year & I am beyond grateful & appreciative of them all!