Living in Alaska makes me really appreciate the little things in life. I don’t take anything for granted. For example, I can’t assume that the package I ordered will show up intact or even show up at all. Or that I will always have plumbing or that a bear won’t come through my yard and get into my beehive or rabbit pens. Or even that I will feel sunshine on my face all year long. So, when the sun starts shining on my face come May, or I take a hot shower at the end of the day, I truly treasure those moments. But in this tumultuous year 2020 where the world is upside down and uncertain, I have a hard time focusing on those positive little things and how lucky my family and I are in this wonderful life we’ve chosen for ourselves. Lately, I’ve been bogged down in the negative, politics, pandemic, etc, so I decided to take a moment and list some of the things that I am grateful for at a personal, at my homestead, level, and share them with you in case you are having a similar problem, of dwelling in the negative.
Here is a list of things I am grateful for every year, just off the top of my head. There are of course a whole lot more but, for the sake of brevity…here’s some of them.
- Remembering where I put my flashlights after almost four months of not needing them.
- Remembering which light switch goes to what in my house after not using lights for several months.
- The first frost which kills the mosquitoes for the rest of the year.
- Finding my sunglasses after putting them away someplace I’ll remember (not really) six months ago.
- The first day in January, January 22nd, to be precise when the sun finally hits the upstairs wall in my house for the first time in two months.
- The first day I can feel the heat from the sunlight on my face, usually the end of February.
- When the temperature climbs above 0°F and stays there.
- Sun all night in the summer, for two months straight.
- The northern lights out my bedroom window.
- Remembering to plug in the freezers in March when it ‘warms’ up.
- The Amanita mushrooms in the fall.
- Finding everything in stock in the grocery store I was looking for and not having to try again a week later.
- The first flower after six months of winter.
- Putting away my down coat and mukluks and pulling out the Chacos and t-shirts at about 30°F.
- The summer solstice, the longest sunlit day of the year.
- The first night it gets dark enough in the summer to see the stars again.
- The first spring migrating bird that sings in my yard, thank you Ruby-crowned Kinglet.
- The first snowfall of the year signifying the end of homestead projects for the year and a lot more seeing friends again.
- The kindness of everyone in Fairbanks, that they will push your car out of the snowy ditch. In fact, usually, several someones will help you without you having to ask.
- The first fresh pea out of my garden.
- Salmon! Lots of salmon.
- Running water and a toilet in the house.
- Being able to shower or do laundry every day in my own home.
- Lots of space to be outside in.
- My three kids that destroy my house and yet make me laugh.
- And last but not least my friends and family, where ever they are, for being healthy and wonderful.
