This morning when I woke up I was slightly grumpy. I remembered Keera and Zaden were gone for a sleepover, and I noticed Emilee was still asleep next to me. So I got up and went to the washroom. Once I was done I came back to bed, and opened up Facebook on my phone. If you use Facebook, you know there’s a memories thing. It’s where Facebook shows you, what you posted on that day in the past anywhere from a year ago to six plus years ago. It’s set so that you’re the only one that can view it, but if you want to your able to share the memory on your timeline for others to see. Most of the time I love this feature, it usually reminds me of cute pictures and videos I posted of my kids in the past. Occasionally it shows me a funny picture or video I shared on my timeline, than there’s other times it’s a reminder of dark times. There’s nothing like a slap in the face from the past to remind you, just how lucky you are. A year ago today I shared this picture on my Facebook, and my Instagram.
No one knew what it meant, because I didn’t post a caption. I posted it shortly after 11 pm, but people don’t know the history of what happened that day. We had just got back, and it was shortly after lunch time. We were going to bring our bags into the house, when Zaden said he had to go to the bathroom. I went to go unlock the door for him, when I noticed a tag on our door handle. They had come and turned off our electricity a couple of days before. All the food in the deep-freeze, the fridge freezer; and fridge had all gone bad. It smelt foul, and like death from all the meat. I remember feeling helpless, and angry. I got someone to come and pick up Keera and Zaden for the night, until I could figure something out.
The person at the power company told us, that as soon as we made the full payment they could send someone to turn the power back on. The “as soon as you make the payment” bit, isn’t true. After you make the full payment, they send someone out within 24-48 hours; it all depends on how busy they are. I found some food in the cupboard, and gave Emilee some lunch while we figured out what to do next. We managed to get everything figured out, but by then it was after 5pm. The representative, told us they would try to get someone out the next day. Instead of sitting at home doing nothing, we decided to head downtown and run some stairs with Emilee to pass the time. We didn’t come back home until just before 11pm, walking into the house and not being able to turn on the lights had me in tears. I lite the candles that I had taken out from before, and was about to bring Emilee to bed. She insisted on cuddling with me on the couch, and as we cuddled I took that picture. I took that picture as a reminder to my future self, that I never wanted to be in that position again. Never again did I want to feel hopeless and like a failure, because I had to struggle or couldn’t pay a utility bill.
I was overwhelmed with a flood of memories of that day, after I seen the picture on my memory feed. I now realize it was also, on some level a symbol of me eventually seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. I’m so grateful for what I have, and how far I’ve come since than. It changed my mood around, so I got Emilee up and we took her to a stampede breakfast. Today was a completely different day, it wasn’t sad like a year ago. I got to eat a pancake breakfast, with my youngest and my mom. Emilee and I drew on the sidewalk, outside the church with some chalk. We smiled and laughed, there was nothing sad about today. 
I know it sounds cliché, but I’m truly blessed and no matter how grateful I was before I’m double that now. It’s crazy how something as simple as a picture from the past, can remind you of just how lucky you are; and how far you’ve come. Once we finished breakfast, we came back to the apartment. We made the choice back in March to move here, and it was one of the best decisions. When I get home, I don’t have to worry about not having running water, or electricity. I don’t need to stress out and wonder whether or not we have food in the fridge. Moving here has cut down on my expenses, and given me the opportunity to save money. I got to spend the rest of the afternoon carefree, playing and watching movies with Emilee.
If your going through a rough time, hold on tight there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Things can change for the better, and they will. You’ve just got to be patient, have faith, and work hard. If you feel like you’ve got no one to talk to, you can message me. 🙂
What are you grateful for today?