Driving home after these visits, I could hardly wait to wrap my arms around each one of my family, thankful they could breathe, speak and even use the potty.

Ironically, since then I have found a renewed sense of gratitude, the feeling that goes away when you start to feel better. Seeing our own life with the beauty and wonder that weaves in and through it brings deep and simple feelings into focus. When my toddler got into homemade roll wreaths we had spent the previous day making, his sticky hands and face aglow, I felt calm. When several people spontaneously told me how mannerly and thoughtful my children were, I felt joy. And as I watched my husband hand paint with us hideous family ornaments for gifts, knowing how much he would rather be four-wheeling, I felt love.

This season we don't need to look far to see the richness in our existence. As we live in our tumbled, disorganized, procrastinated and overweighted lives, we can focus on the warm, joyful and abundant present, the best gift we've already received. Merry Christmas!

LIFEChange Tip: Today, think of 10 wonderful things present in your life. Share them with your family or a friend.

Book Pick: "Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy," by Sarah Ban Breathnach

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