Hello Families,

As we enter into this first month of the year, I have a simple message for us all. This comes from a daily meditation book that a dear friend gave to me last year. The book is called, "Sunrise Gratitude".

"As our minds reflect on the completion of another year, we focus on what we accomplished and our plans for the upcoming year. Take a moment [right now] to bring awareness to the current moment: it is the only thing that matters. All your to-dos can wait. All that you are planning will happen in due time. In this moment, offer yourself gratitude for getting to where you are today. You made it! Give gratitude for a year full of beauty, lessons, and love."

Take a moment to draw your own interpretation from this message. For me, it's an invitation to stop striving and seeking for just a moment and fill my mind and heart with joy for the "beauty, lessons, and love" that has come from all the challenges we have faced in the past couple of years. We can let our reflections about the pandemic make us tired or triumphant. I can be a worrier or a warrior. Not that I don't get tired or worried, but I choose to let the latter be my story. I invite you to choose gratitude and positivity as we hold each other up while the challenge continues.

With gratitude,

Mrs. Gold