Happy Things

First, I just wanted to say thank you so much for the outpouring of support in response to my post last week about mental health and suicide. As I mentioned in that post, I don’t have the emotional capacity right now to respond individually to each comment…but I can’t tell you how much it meant to me to hear from you — that you took the time to share words of support, and put yourself out there to share your own stories about mental health and suicide. I’m moved and grateful to have such a wonderful online community. And I promise we’re going to get back to the home improvement/DIY stuff that you probably read this blog for. But today, I just wanted to share a few happy life things. It has been a tough few months and to be honest I have been feeling pretty down about a number of things — but there are amazing, beautiful things in the world, and more than ever I want to appreciate that.

Like how last Saturday, a few days after Alex died, I got to spend the day celebrating one of my best friends in the world as she got married. It was a jarring juxtaposition, but it felt so important and healing to be celebrating love and hope.

Also I won the award for bridesmaid with the best sports bra tan. This is *with* makeup trying to blend the lines….

And then Sam and I headed to Colorado for a long-planned vacation. It didn’t feel like a great time to be away from work and the weather was about 15 degrees colder and rainier than usual this time of year, but the fresh air (even if it was lacking as much oxygen as I’m used to…) was so valuable.

And I’m so grateful for my family and friends, all of whom have enveloped me in love and support…and do whenever I need it. There aren’t enough photos in the world to capture this amazing group of people, so instead here’s a picture of the quilt my mom has been making for us — almost done!

And lastly, I’m so grateful for my health. I honestly don’t know what my life would be without running, and I’m thrilled that I’ve just finished a cycle of marathon training and am hoping for a good race this coming Sunday. Whether it’s a fast or slow day, I’m focusing on being thankful that my legs and lungs are strong and take me wherever I ask them to — whether that’s 22 miles around Boston, 15 miles along the west side of Manhattan, or 1.5 miles up a mountain in Boulder.

I hope that no matter what is happening in your life right now, you’re able to see light and joy somewhere. And I promise that come Wednesday, we’ll be back to our regularly-scheduled DIY programming.