dissect this picture

a view from my desk this morning.

reminders of just how much i have to be thankful for....

1) music & cards. a little box on my desk. filled with CDs and a box of love in envelopes, sent via USPS to make someone else's day. i don't glance at it enough. don't realize how blessed i am to have the gift of hearing to listen to sweet melodies, how lucky i am to have such amazing people in my life to send these little 'envelopes of love' to. need to remember--need to glance more often.

2) duke (the huge yellow lab). found out he wasn't doing so well yesterday. his arthritis is getting really bad. i was so excited to get him 10 years ago. so excited to have something to take care of, a big yellow fur-ball to wrestle around with. i forget about the companionship animals offer...the joy they tend to bring. so three cheers for duke...and i suppose he gets a "hip-hip-hooray" too :)

3) sunglasses. these are actually broken. held together by a safety pin. oh well--they serve their purpose: blocking the sun from my eyeballs. and you know what sun means? yup. warm weather. excited for it--excited that i don't have to wear layers and layers of clothing, excited that it means birds and green grass and swimming (i LOVE swimming). these broken sunglasses are waiting for use....waiting and waiting and waiting. [oh...and they do serve another purpose: guards against eyelash puller-outers. ehm! you know who you are!].

4) dr. pooh. apparently that will be me. well....not so much the 'pooh' part as the 'doctor' part. excited about next year. feeling totally blessed that God opened this door for me. feeling out of control at the same time--but finding comfort in the fact that the Big Dude will be beside me the whole time. counting my blessings for this opportunity.

5) jon-bear. a little version of this cool dude i know. feeling so blessed to know him...to spend time with him. and these days time is a scarce commodity--one that is treasured and enjoyed. wanting him to know that i respect him. respect his respect for me--for other women in general. respect his commitment to his family...his studies...and his country. respect his faith--immensely. and most of all, respect who he is now and who he is becoming. and so jon-bear sits on my desk....a reminder of this amazing man i know :)

6) "happy spring". so cool. flowers. totally an unexpected surprise--an appreciated surprise. also from this amazing person (aka jon-bear in reality size). and really, when it comes down to it, these are a representation of him. of how he thinks of me (which, by the way, makes me feel special)...of how he treats me...of how he fights for me, for us. i am truly blessed :) thanks for the flowers, cool dude. and thanks, most of all, for being the incredible person you are.