A Wednesday Coffee Note
This morning was the first time I didn’t wake up with a pit of anxiety in my stomach. Not because anything is different. I didn’t suddenly win the lottery or land a $10 million dollar contract that ended all of my financial woes. I woke up just as I have every other day for the last couple of years. Kitten by my side and fluffy blanket kicked halfway to the floor.
The difference this morning was the overwhelming feeling of gratitude. When I say gratitude, I am not talking about endless lists written in happiness journals or affirmations breathed into the fog of the bathroom mirror after a hot shower. It’s the realization of what has real value in life.
A few days ago, I finished my work for the day and got onto LinkedIn to start reviewing my connections. Just as I was about to send an email, my daughter-in-law called me – my son had gotten into an e-bike accident. He was on his way to the store and only a couple of blocks from home. Life360 shows that he took one minute to make the trip. One minute. Sixty seconds. The amount of times it takes to blink 15 times or fix a bed.
His bike is totaled. His helmet melted from his head skidding across the ground. He has no memory of what happened or what caused the accident.
Five hours after he was released from the ER, my daughter-in-law called me. It was that dreaded 1 AM call. One of the calls no one wants to get. My son had a seizure and was being rushed back to the ER. The good news is he’s going to be okay. His shoulder still hurts today. He’s being taken care of by his wife and friends to make sure he remains okay.
My daughter-in-law told me my son was initially upset about the bike. It was brand new, and his way to get back and forth to work. He was understandably frustrated.
The rest of us? We don’t care about the bike. It’s replaceable. He’s still alive.That’s all that matters. We know things will work out one way or another. It always does.
It’s a fact of life that we need money to live and pay our bills. We know it’s important to work and focus on priorities to take care of our basic needs. We might have frustrations throughout the day about this or that. But, at the end of the day, what actually matters?
It’s not a frustrating work day. It’s not the long lines at the grocery store. It’s not getting stuck in traffic on the freeway. It’s not the frustrating people you had to talk to today or even an argument that you’ll forget about tomorrow.
It’s that fear of the 1 AM phone call. The accident that happened in a matter of seconds. It’s your worst fear and the sigh of relief when you find out it’s going to be all right.
Then there are the boring days where only the little things happen. The days that aren’t filled with amazing adventures and the only priority is cuddling up on the couch with your favorite person, a cup of coffee and a good movie.
If your focus has been locked on the bottom line and grinding through every hour trying to get ahead, it’s worth a moment to pause and ask what you might be missing. Work will always be there. No matter what happens throughout the day, the only things that do matter are our people and gratitude for every memory we get to share with them.
Things are replaceable. Our loved ones are not.
Sometimes the best thing we can do is remind each other about what matters the most. If this did that for you, please share and support my work , you can buy me a coffee and keep me writing. If you’d wish to collaborate, I would love to connect with a Coffee Conversation.
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