30 days of thanksgiving. DAY THIRTEEN.

"i make myself rich by making my wants few."
-- henry david thoreau

i love this quote.  tonight i had a few moments of feeling sorry for myself...not gonna lie.  i let myself feel the emotion...missing my house, missing my old life.  but then i took a long hot shower, put on a warm fleece robe, ate a chocolate chip pumpkin muffin and a sweetango apple and talked for a long time with my sister jennifer.

REALLY?  i have no right to allow myself to take the plunge to self pity.

i am SO SO SO SO BLESSED.  i have a warm place to call home...HECK, i have a PLACE to call home, who even cares if it's warm, right?  i have food in the fridge.  blankets to snuggle up in.  a cute cheetah robe. and i have friends and family who love me.  LIFE IS GOOD.

when i am tempted to look at the things i WISH I HAD, there is a story that comes back to me EVERY TIME.  i've shared this through the years but am so glad that tonight i was able to find a few of the photos that actually go along with this story.

back in the fall of 1999, my sweet friend julia was traveling to malawi, africa.  she would be taking clothing donations along with her...as much as she could possibly get into her luggage.

at that point, jordan would have been turning four.  she was just a wee thing.  and THAT GIRL WAS A FASHIONISTA even then.  SHE LOVED HER DRESSES.  would not wear anything BUT dresses.  even though we were living in cleveland, ohio and it was BRUTAL COLD.  she didn't care.

i remember her bedroom...so girly...and i remember explaining to her that miss julia was collecting clothes for the children in africa who needed them.  jordan went through her closet...and so vividly i remember her going to her favorite dress...a little floral smocked laura ashley dress...and telling me she wanted to give it to a little girl in africa.

i sent the dress, along with others, with julia.  again, that was fall of 1999.

in the spring of 2000, i made my first trip to malawi.  the phrase 'life changing' truly doesn't even capture it.  one of the moments that i will NEVER, EVER, EVER forget was when we went to the church 'building' and a woman walked up the path with her daughter.  WEARING JORDAN'S LAURA ASHLEY SMOCKED DRESS.

it was no longer the pristine, freshly pressed dress that once hung in my daughter's closet.  instead it was well worn, with malawi DIRT ground in to it.  and it was more beautiful than ever.

i am thankful for that moment.  because in THESE moments where i start to wish that life were different, i am able to look back, gain perspective, and realize that i have MORE than i need, MORE than i deserve, MORE than i could ever ask for.

I AM THANKFUL.  for the simple things.  i make myself rich by making my wants few.