Where ya been, Anne?

So, I haven't been around, yadda, yadda.

Lemme 'splain.

For those of you new around here, and even those of you not new around here who are wondering why I haven't been posting so much, I'll fill you in.

Many of you know that my husband was in a serious car accident over the summer. He is fully recovered, has been for months now, and we've been moving forward just fine. Some things got put on hold, so after his recovery, we spent a lot of time trying to get caught up on those things, which we are about done with at this point.

But somewhere in all of that, I went through an attitude shift. Before his accident, I found nothing more entertaining that a bit of snark. I prefered that it be good-natured snark, but if it dipped into the negative at times, as long as it was funny, I'd be laughing. That's not the case anymore.

I'm not saying I've lost my sense of humor. I still laugh at the absurd, the wry, the comical. It just hit me in a very real way that life is an incredibly fragile and beautiful thing. It could all be over in an instant, which is something I knew before the accident, but hadn't fully internalized. Suddenly, I was presented with a reality that included losing a great deal of my blessings. Not just my husband, which would have been horrible in and of itself, but a whole lifestyle that I really do enjoy. I love that I can homeschool my girls. I love that I don't have to work and can be a stay-at-home mom. There is nothing that better suits me at this point in my progression. I adore watching my kids grow. Why would I complain about their shortcomings? My husband works so hard for us. Why would I knock him for it? My house may not be a mansion, but it keeps us out of the elements, maintains a fairly regulated temperature, and contains more than enough physical goods to keep us comfortable. How is there anything wrong with that?

And as far as the people around me are concerned, I am of the opinion that there is nothing more pointless than sitting around and discussing their faults. We all have faults, but I think most of us have far more good qualities than bad. And since we all have faults, why sit around pointing out the faults of others? What an extreme waste of time. We could be enjoying people for their good qualities instead of focusing on the bad when they aren't around. The funny thing is that when people are busy complaining about others, they don't realize that it is just making themselves look malicious and untrustworthy. I know I didn't.

I feel like I need to enjoy my family more. I feel like I need to be in more positive places. I feel less like I need to be 'important' in the eyes of others. People can take me as I am or they can move on. I don't feel the need to blog about my craft, I feel the need to do my craft. And even that I don't feel the need to do as obsessively anymore. I feel like I've found a balance that is serving me well at the moment.

Things are just different now, and I'm quite enjoying it.