A Heart of Gratitude

Thanksgiving should be a time of reflection (among other things). It is an opportunity to sit back and think about the many blessings we have been given this year.

Oh, I know – not everything was peachy this past year. Reflecting just on CV Weekly I can share that it was tough. The break-in that we suffered has had long-lasting effects – we’ll reach for something and it’s not there or we’ll discover something new that is missing and assume it was stolen. 

But in true CV Weekly fashion, the community stepped up to help us out. We’ve had a ton of contributions to a GoFundMe page (https://gofund.me/0f90b728) set up by a CVW supporter as well as having received checks from folks who aren’t as comfortable going online to make a contribution. These funds are helping us rebuild the paper.

I’ll be honest, though: not everything is replaceable. For example, our office manager’s backpack was stolen. I can replace the iPad that was in it – but what about the ashes of her beloved pup Indiana who was a mainstay of our office? Her ashes were in that backpack and I can’t replace those.

And Mary O’Keefe had a computer bag stolen that dates back more than 30 years – another irreplaceable item.

I am very grateful the folks who work with me don’t blame me for anything. And my brain understands that no one should blame me – after all, I was injured, too. But every time a check isn’t processed properly (checkbooks were stolen too) and my team is inconvenienced I feel it in my gut.

I think I need to take a deep breath and just be thankful that a) no one was hurt; b) the community is helping and c) no one is assigning blame (aside to the crud who stole our stuff).

Looking ahead, tomorrow (Friday) is the Plaid Friday celebration in Montrose. I’ve attended that for years, whether or not I wrote a story for the paper. The trolley, carolers and lighting of the Christmas tree all kick off a joyous holiday season.

And looking ahead in a couple of days I will be listening to KOST playing Christmas tunes on the radio. Yes, I know that in November KOST “flipped the switch” and is playing only holiday tunes; however, I think that it’s too easy as it is to fast forward through Thanksgiving and go right into Christmas. 

After all, it’s important to quiet our minds and be thankful to those who make our life better – in my case, my family, my co-workers and my readers.

I’m grateful to them all.