Ruth Ayres has
a link-up on weekends where people link to posts that are celebrations
about their week. I love this reminder to celebrate every week though
this month I have been remiss. I haven't been as good about celebrating here on the blog this month. It's not that I don't have things to celebrate, but life gets in the way.
This year had many challenges and many blessings. We moved to a new home in April. That absorbed a lot of our energy, time, and money. We adore the new house though and love our neighborhood.
My favorite things about the house are glass doorknobs, a laundry chute, and the fabulous location.
Connections are another thing I'm celebrating this year. We are meeting so many new people and are making and maintaining more friendships. The area where we live has houses close together and we are within walking/biking distance of the university and downtown so we can easily attend many events. I'm in two different book clubs now. One of them consists of neighbors and moves from house to house though they are all in walking distance. Long distance connections also seem to be getting stronger. I am especially happy to have met up with Twitter and blogging friends via NerdcampMI and ALA in Chicago this summer. Each in person visit solidifies friendships even more.
The challenges of this year have been many. Events in our nation and the world have contributed to raised anxiety and frustration for me. This has caused me to become more connected to various activist groups and more involved in local events to make a difference here. I will choose to hold onto the positive things we have done. The most visible activity was a fundraiser for diverse books to put in the hands of children and educators in our city. We were able to raise over four thousand dollars in a brief amount of time. We distributed books to children at the Boys and Girls Club and directly to many teachers in the school district for their classroom libraries.
2018 will surely bring more challenges, but I look forward to stepping out into this new year with friends and family to embrace the difficulties and the joys. Happy New Year.
It has been such a stressful year, I agree, Crystal. I'm glad you feel good with the activities you have helped with. Congrats on such big success. And how wonderful your neighborhood sounds. I remember your move, exciting but tiring with every other part of life keeping on, so happy it worked out well. Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI am glad you are here. This celebrate community grows positivity. New home, connecting with people, taking action - super celebrations. Happy New Year, Crystal!
ReplyDeleteI love that your new home has a laundry chute! And a neighborhood book club sounds delightful. I share your anxiety and frustration over our current events both national and world. Kudos to you for your activism! Happy New Year, Crystal!
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