Monday Salute

I had an amazing weekend with my fiance in Half Moon Bay and a perfect dinner with my best friend and his new wife, who just returned from their honeymoon in Thailand. And then, just before bed, I received an e-mail that relayed a ton of different things, all of which were deflating, depressing or just generally bad news.

When I first opened my eyes this morning I was consumed by the impending nightmare that today was promising to be. But as I slowly and thoughtfully went through my morning routine, careful not to focus on anything but the warmth of my morning shower, homey flavors of my breakfast and all of the simple but fine things you experience if you focus on the moment (the "Now", thank you Eckart Tolle) and the depressing fog began to lift. I got all of my things together, after taking a moment to admire the communal comfort one gets as everyone pulls out of their garages and heads to work at the same time, and drove to the coffee shop for week 3 of teaching myself advanced accounting.

Rather than anxiously diving into my problems, I started to write this 'Monday Salute.' I refused to jump straight into all of the pressing issues that could easily have turned my morning into a nightmare of tension, anxiety and stress and am now relaxed and doing what feels right and what I want to do. I am confident that I will solve all of the day's problems that I can, and no matter what happens I will end the day by going to the gym and making dinner with the love of my life... Now, as I write this, my problems and issues, serious as they are, seem to be folding themselves neatly into smaller problems, things I can handle and always have. It's just another day of work and another day I am lucky to be alive. So here is my 'Monday Solute':

Here is to Mondays.
Here is to the woman I love more every day of my life.
Here is to the money that helps but that we really don't need to survive.
Here is to having the things that matter: family, friends, love and health.
And here is to knowing and caring that this morning was worse for someone else.

Here is to Mondays.
Here is to pumpkin patches, football, winter, celebrations and change.
Here is to really living and trying to appreciate each and every moment of each and every day.
Here is to all of those who are sick or hurt or sad or dying today
And here is to Mondays because, if you are here, then real problems are still far, far away.