grateful for fog (not really)

Can I just say how much I appreciate the sunshine?! I don't realize just how much I miss it until I'm into about day 3 of fogginess and overcastness. And I'm pretty sure we got to about 6 or 7 days of all that malarkey. The sunshine energizes me and when it is not visible, I live in a fog too. I'm kinda high maintenance when it comes to weather...

But then I think: what if I lived in sunshine all the time? Would I get tired of it? Would I take it for granted? (Probably not - I'm pretty grateful for it everyday! But for the sake of this post... maybe!)  I think that maybe when we get a good thing on a regular basis, sometimes we have to have it gone for a bit to really appreciate it.

It's like our health, or our families, or the stuff we have.

I love camping, but I'll tell you what: I'm grateful to get back to my bed and my shower and my kitchen!

And I love my kids. My kids are ornery and get completely get on my nerves. They can be stinkers and be disobedient and make bad choices (and leaves their socks all OVER the house - if you've been following my Instagram account: @katcragin_writes, then you would understand the sock saga). But I have a close relationship with each of them and I get to spend time with them and I know they have good hearts! And I'm reminded of these hearts when I read articles or hear stories of children who have no respect for their parents or have a rebellious spirit or who have parents who gave up on them and they've had to raise themselves.

And my health: I'm not in great shape. Pretty sure I can count on 2 hands how many times I worked out in 2017... But I'm not sick, I can still function quite normally, and I really have nothing to complain about. But having cancer in our family certainly makes a person examine ther lifestyle and be grateful for their current health and strength!

Sometimes the fog and gloom need to filter into life so that we can appreciate all the good God has bestowed upon us. 

Sometimes the socks need to be left all over the house so you can appreciate when they are all put in the laundry. That one day out of the month. 🙄

Sometimes you need to find an eggshell in your breakfast so you can appreciate how wonderful they taste without shells. 

Sometimes you need the loudness and distractions throughout the day so you can appreciate the peacefulness and quiet in the evening.

And sometimes you have to be in the ashes before you get that crown of beauty. (Isaiah 61:3)

KC