The New Year

I teach the Sunbeams (3-4 year olds) at my church. This Sunday, we talked about New Years and made fun little hats for them to wear on NYE. I can't believe it has been a whole year since I started teaching them. I love getting to be apart of their lives and growth. Hearing their responses to my questions is so much fun for me. Children bring joy to this world, incomparable to anything else. One of our favorite parts about Christmas this year was watching the children we bought gifts for open them. 

As I was telling my sweet kids about the New Year, it got me to thinking about my year and this new one about to start. I have to admit, I am a sucker for the New Year. I love to think of it as a fresh start. Even as a young girl, I have always made resolutions. 

This year has been really a hard year for Mike and I. Mike injured his back in the beginning of the year and it has been a lot harder then I ever could have imaged. Mike's injury was really bad when he first hurt it. It was hard for him to do much of anything. We like to travel and explore and we were not able to keep doing that. Mike had to spend a lot of time at home. On top of that, Mike isn't the best at opening up when it comes to his problems. He feels like he is burdening me and just keeps it to himself. Which was really hard for me. I want him to talk with me about his problems and feel comfortable opening up to me. 

Mike was going to get surgery and have his back fixed. He set up the meeting with the doctor and we drove a few hours to the appointment. The doctor told him that he was not a good candidate for surgery. The doctor could only give about a 30 percent chance of success, and Mike would have a hole in is spinal column for the rest of his life. Mike was pretty heart broken. He has dreamed his whole life of being a pilot and realizing that he could no longer fly was pretty hard for him. He was really depressed for a few months. It was also hard for me, especially because I never knew what was going on in his head. He never told me how he was feeling about the whole thing. He was just closed off and a lot meaner than usual. 

Since then, things have gotten a lot better and I can honestly say, I feel closer to my husband than I ever have before. It is amazing how going through hard things can bring a sense of peace that happiness cannot. Looking back on my life, the hard things I have gone through have changed me and made me a much better person. In a weird way, I am so grateful for them.

As we start this new year, I am excited to see what is to come. Although Mike is unable to fly, we have been looking to see what is available next. Mike is such a hard worker and has set up so many options available to us. I am forever grateful for that. It has been fun to dream about the possibilities. I cannot wait to see what this year brings.