Searching for the right word. (Post three.)

In the weeks before the Buddy Walk and while my pockets were filling with donations I started searching for a word that could adequately describe how I was feeling during that time. My need to find that word became more important to me in the hours during and after the Buddy Walk.

Yesterday the word came to me. GRATITUDE.

See, I have many people that I want to thank for their support, but a thank-you note just doesn't seem to be enough. There's more to it than that. Gratitude is deeper. It is an emotional state that I have been living since Sunday. It is a feeling on indebtedness because I know in most cases I will not be able to reciprocate for all that has been done for us. This gratitude is not because people sent us so much money. This gratitude comes because people took the time to send us money. It is about our neighbor's, John and Angelia Craig and their two children. Angelia and the kids walked around our neighborhood collecting donations and John took a pledge form to his office and collected money too. Their family raised over two hundred dollars in honor of Ryan. And again, the amount raised is wonderful, but it's more about their actions. They went through our neighborhood, sharing our story and believing that our cause is worth that effort. A card is not much in return, but I hope they and all those that contributed know how grateful we are for this gift.

I wish that there could be a way to bring everyone into my heart right now; so that I could share this feeling and allow you to experience my gratitude. Alas, this is not possible and I must rely on words to simply say thank-you.



"You will not be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you."
~ Sarah Ban Breathnach ~
Simple Abundance