Thursday 27 December 2012

Thankful Thursday

It has just occurred to me that this is the last Thankful Thursday post of 2012.  Another year is drawing to a close.  Another year when those of  my generation are closer to the end of our lives than the beginning.  No, I'm not being morbid.  That's not in my nature.  It's a simple statement of fact.  It does, however, make one think.  It has made me stop this evening and look out of each of the windows of The Cottage at the various things I can see.  It has made me think about the fact that these are things I am so very lucky to be able to see.  It is now over 14 years since I was diagnosed with cancer: a cancer that, had it not been treated despite the fact that there were no symptoms and no indication that it was there, might have claimed my life within months rather than years.  It makes one think that every day is a day to be savoured.

Since then Dad and Mum and my Uncle have died, Carol's and my son Andy has died and, in fact, countless others have died as well.  Two relationships which were very special in my life have also ended.

On the other hand I have become closer to my son than I could ever have imagined and consolidated my friendship with my brother.  I have old friends whom I treasure beyond anything I can think of (and some of whom I don't deserve).  I have made some of the most wonderful friendships possible with people I didn't even know in 1998.   Since that date I have acquired a surrogate family and a second Country and lived a life which back then I could never even have dreamed of. 

If I died tomorrow I would die one of the most fortunate people on this planet.

For that I am very, very thankful. 

I thought that I would just add a few photos from the 120,000 plus that I have taken since 1998.  They have been chosen from the digital images on the computer and are very much what I have spied in my hasty trawl over the last hour or so:

Gaz before our climb up the Clisham, Isle of Harris, 2004
On top of The Clisham, Isle of Harris, 2004: the perfect day - we could see from St Kilda to Cape Wrath to the Ardnamurchan Peninsula
The aftermath of The Hurricane, January 2005 two days before Pat and Dave moved to The Island
Pat, a born and bred townie, up out of her comfort zone in 2005. Now she's embraced Island life more than most.
My New Zealand home
The Californian coastline at sunset, 2004. Perhaps not the most beautiful sunset I'd ever seen but an unforgettable holiday with a dear friend (it was leap year and on the 29 February in California I received a proposal of marriage - but I'm still single)
One of my longest-standing friends and a daughter - Ontario, Canada at, you guessed it, Halloween, 2005
A sight I never thought I'd see: San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge 2004
Catriona aged 4
Heli-hiking on the Franz Josef Glacier 2005
And as Bugs Bunny would say "That's all folks.".

20 comments:

  1. A wonderful selection of photos, and much to be thankful for indeed. I'm so glad you beat the cancer Graham, and I wish you many happy new years still to come!

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    1. Thanks Monica. I'm always reluctant to say that one has 'beaten' cancer but I've certainly had a long reprieve so far.

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    2. I understand that reluctance, Graham... But I think you know my meaning! ♥

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  2. It is wonderful that you have so much to be thankful for in your life - and even more wonderful that you ARE thankful for them! Some people get so embittered by tragic events in their lives (such as the death of a child or the breaking up of a marriage, or an illness) and focus only on the negative things that they forget the positives.
    Like Monica, I, too, am glad that you beat the cancer, and I am looking forward to reading many more posts on your blog in 2013.

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    1. Thanks Meike. I'm very conscious that the crap things that have happened could very easily have overshadowed the wonderful things (and at one time they nearly did) but I was lucky enough to have been given a positive personality and with friends' help (and a very stern talking to by one in particular) I've survived and always managed to be thankful.

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  3. lovely photos as always Graham. Its a lovely post and makes me feel special as I know I am one of the 'old friends' you treasure as you are the same to me. I miss you and think of you every day. Lets hope 2013 is as a good one.

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    1. Carol you are indeed a wonderful and valued friend and when I'm here in New Zealand I miss our evening chats with the occasional glass of red.

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  4. A beautiful post, GB. So many people and things to be thankful for, blessings really.
    Wishing you many more of those in the new year!

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    1. Thanks Lisa and, yes, everything is a blessing in one way or another.

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  5. I love reading your thankful Thursdays. Best wishes and love from both Mark and I for a wonderful,fun and healthy 2013!!!

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    1. Jaz, it is you above all people who has made me concentrate on remembering to be thankful for my good fortune and not just to accept it without thinking. I hope with all my positive thoughts that you, Mark and the girls have a happy and, above all, healthy year ahead.

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    2. You are both an inspiration to me. A positive attitude and a get out and do it attitude allow a fuller, more rewarding life. Some time to savour the journey and reflect must also pay off so you are not too busy to realize you are actually contented and fulfilled.
      Wishing us all a healthy and happy year ahead
      X

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    3. My hap'ny's worth: You THREE are an inspiration to ME. Change is inevitable. It's what one does with it... etc.

      Thanks for blogging, guys!

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  6. It's good to take the time to be grateful for our many blessings. And the end of the year seems a good time to do it. Do you make New Year's resolutions? I have a sort of on-going list of things I hope to accomplish during the year. Some aren't strictly resolutions the way "stop smoking," lose weight" etc. are, but are more of a to-d- list. Finally make it to the museum I've been meaning to visit. Or to finally finish clearing out the hall closet. Sometimes in the year I manage to do them all, sometimes not. But the list helps keep me focused.

    Love your photos by the way. And I look forward to more of them in future.

    Have a Happy New Year! xoxox Carol

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    1. Thanks Carol. I don't make New Year's resolutions and I don't have a particular list of things to achieve in the way that you mention although I do have lists to the extent that I almost have to make lists of my lists so that I can keep track of them. A very Happy and Healthy New Year to you and yours as well.

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  7. What a lovely melange of photos GB....enjoyed them all.
    We all have so much to be thankful for, and we should give thanks for our blessings.
    Life deals us some hard hands sometimes, but that is when we gain strength and rise above it all. It's a game we all have to play.
    When I first read your blog, I knew I had to keep in contact because at that time you needed strength.
    So glad that you have come this far. The year 2012 was a tedious one for most of us, and I'm praying that 2013 will bring more blessings, good experiences and close friendships.
    Wishing you and yours all the best of everything for the New Year!!

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    1. Thank you Virginia. You've been a real pal. 2012 did have some tedious moments for many of my friends and acquaintances and, here in New Zealand, for our politicians (politicians everywhere actually) and the news reporter yesterday managed to say now that this year is over the politicians would all be hoping 2014 would be a better year. I spent a few minutes trying to work out whether I had just lost a year or whether she knew something I didn't about 2013.

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  8. Is it really 14 years? Well, stab me vitals.

    What are friends for if not giving you a stern talking to. Wish I had one like that.

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    1. Yep. It was a long time ago.

      Well at least I took notice of you didn't I? Would you have done?

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