Friends & Family #1 Blessing

I had a feeling, an instinct if you will, that December would be a month of ebb and flow and that trust would be the key to sanity. I’m halfway through this roller coaster of a month and my intuition has never been more spot on.Each time I get mired in sadness by a loss, I remember that my resistance could be blocking the next great thing around the corner - that the void could be replaced by something even better. And more often than not, that has been the case.Last week I had the opportunity to visit New York City and my newest employer, Conversation, a full service marketing agency with a slew of very cool people. Our hotel was next to Madison Square Park and within walking distance of everywhere we needed to go. It was a whirlwind tour beginning with a red eye and me in a seat that wouldn’t recline because I was in front of the exit doors. I slept slumped over my dinner tray with all the blankets and jackets I brought.. not too bad.My favorite things about the offices were: it was painted bright orange, dogs were welcome, they had a fridge and stove and the people were quite hip and friendly with hugs all around. The holiday party was a blast! And the brainstorming session was everything I had dreamed of when I first got into public relations many moons ago.Visiting my friend Louie, aka Tio Louie, was a definite highlight. Map in hand, I walked through Chelsea to West Village. I loved walking over the fallen leaves in front of the brownstones. The air was crisp at about 45 degrees. Louie lives in an apartment building with a garden in the middle that oozed serenity that has probably blessed generations of people. I love the tiny elevators in NYC. Don’t ask me why.Louie’s apartment was absolutely filled with music and books and the funniest knick knacks, my favorite being the Clinton corkscrew and nut cracker. Louie made me a delicious pasta meal and we talked fast, trying to catch up on six years in less than one hour. He’s a great listener, which is probably what makes him a great documentarian. I reviewed the highlights and lows of my life since 2005. So much change, so many blessings.I recently said that my ability to look for the bright side of even of the darkest of times is my favorite part about myself. Mostly I’m good about that and sometimes I falter as Suzy Sunshine.. but that’s when my friends and family pick up the pieces – my greatest blessings.