Tears sprang to my eyes when once again I had gone through another interview and was told told I didn't have the qualities they were looking for. Time and time again since I lost my job I had gone through this, I was discouraged and depressed.

On this day, I went out on the back porch and gazed at the pansies growing so carefree in the barrel outside my back door.

I just stared at the simplistic beauty, their deep velvet petals bobbing in the light breeze on their delicate stems.

As I sat on the stoop, I breathed deeply and my thoughts just bounced from one to another with no direction. Just a deep sense of sadness welling up inside me.

And I looked at the pansies again, and I thought, "Consider the lilies of the field, they do not toil, nor do they spin, yet Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as one of these." To paraphrase, I know that is not the exact wording, but it was the words in my mind as I sat there feeling sorry for myself.

And it was a soft reminder that I have more blessings than others.

I am jobless, but I am not homeless.

I may be alone at times, but I can never be lonely with my Father by my side.

My children may not be here, but I know where they are, and they are not sick or crippled or in a war zone.

I may get hungry, but I can walk into the kitchen and make myself something to eat.

I am not blind, I can see beauty around me. The flowers outside my back door, the mourning doves that perch on the wires and coo, the cardinal that comes to visit my bird feeder, the rabbits that tease the dogs. I can look in my garden and see new growth of young tomatoes and zucchini, I can see the peaches ripening into orangish orbs on the tree in my yard.

And I can hear the birds sing their songs, I can hear a baby laugh, I can hear a touching song of love.

I can hear someone say to me that they love me.

I can feel. I can feel the soft fur of the cat as I stroke her. I can feel my husband's heart beat against my own. I can feel his strong arms around me, holding me to him, not willing to ever let me go.

I read the other day that if you 'act joyful' you end up 'feeling joyful'. There may be something to that.

Take a moment or two and consider the lilies of the field, what have you got to lose?

Learn more about this author, D. Begole.
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