Ten Things of Thankful - Week 41, 2017

The above image shows two large multifaceted diamonds positioned next to each other at angles with eight small diamonds arranged in a ring around them. The image background is white with the diamonds resting on what appears to be soft sand with a pinkish hue. The diamonds sparkle with refracted light. A quote by Thomas Carlyle is printed black script across the top of the image and simply states "No pressure, no diamonds." The image has been borrowed from bespangledjewelry.blogspot.com*

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I believe that we are all born as diamonds in the rough, and over the years God works at grinding and polishing until we hopefully begin to shine. :-) Life stressors, though not fun, are one of the ways we develop our inner strength and wisdom. For so many people this has been a week (a year?) of those, but yet we are all here and doing our best to bravely move forward day by day in steps of faith.

I have a big reason to be thankful this week... my daughter and her husband were travelling in Dallas rush hour traffic Wednesday evening. David was driving. A vehicle two cars ahead of them suddenly stopped, and thankfully David has good reflexes and was able to stop their vehicle in time. Unfortunately, the driver behind them was looking down, and when she glanced up it was too late... she slammed into them at 30 mph. Now that doesn't sound like something to be thankful for, but...

 

I am thankful that David was able to stop their vehicle from hitting the one in front of them.

 

I am thankful that they were aware the vehicle behind them was not going to stop and instead of bracing themselves stiffly for impact, they concentrated on relaxing their bodies as much as they could. As a result, they were only slightly sore next day instead of sustaining injuries.  As a long time floor duty nurse, my daughter already has neck/back/shoulder problems, and most definitely didn't need to aggravate that. I doubt that I would have been level-headed enough to relax when fear instinctively makes you tense up.

 

I am thankful that David drives a high-end vehicle which has a steel reinforced frame that greatly lessened the damage to their vehicle and the impact they felt. They were able to drive it home.

 

I am thankful that the lady who hit them was humble and very sorry. They all treated each other kindly instead of a hostile situation developing. Her car sustained greater damage and she was worried that her husband was going to be upset. Their understanding helped her to cope.

 

I am ever so thankful she had insurance and was quick to provide them with the necessary info.

 

I am thankful that David was driving, and not my daughter. He has lived in Dallas for some time, and for several years at an earlier point in his life, so is far more familiar with the roads and traffic. She's just been there two weeks, and would have been heartbroken if it had happened to her or had been her fault.

 

I am thankful that, while it was upsetting, no one was hurt, and my daughter was able to get out and drive the next day despite being a little nervous from the experience. She knows that "bumper cars" is a way of life in big cities, and accidents will happen. 

 

I am thankful that they both have two vehicles at this point. David also has a work vehicle, and my daughter has a Toyota that she has not sold in addition to her newer vehicle. Having a spare to drive is a blessing, especially since David's job takes him out of town most weeks and leaves her on her own.

I am thankful this didn't happen while we were there visiting, riding in the traffic stresses me out enough as it is. 

I am thankful they were together when the accident happened, and that David wasn't out of town, so they were able to support and comfort one another. 

 

I am thankful for the reminder to drive carefully and attentively; and as I reminded them, to treasure every moment you have to share, because life can change in a moment.

 

Although David loves his car and was sad about the accident that will affect it's resale value some day, he knows it could have been so much worse. And now that we have their first (and I'd like to hope last) Dallas traffic accident out of the way, we can chalk that up to experience and move on. 

 

I think this is another great example of how an occurrence in our lives can be so stressful and yet contain so many blessings when viewed from that perspective. I suspect if we lived in a state of full awareness it would be easy to list a hundred blessings each day; but really, it isn't the number that matters... it's the attitude. I KNOW that, despite the ups and downs, and doubts and struggles of life, I am blessed beyond measure, how about you?

Blessings to you in the days and weeks ahead... Look for reasons to be thankful in your life, and remember to be a blessing to someone else!
 

The above photo is a click-button to the TToT link-up. It is photo of one of our beautiful Texas sunsets with blue still peeking through the clouds; yellow, orange and pink bands around the remaining sliver of bright sun, and a wide band of black earth below it on which I've written Ten Things of Thankful.*

* Descriptions of the included photos are being provided for those who may be unable to view the illustrations.