Gratitude...

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It turns a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates vision for tomorrow." ~ Melody Beattie

I am taking an online class...and this quote came across my inbox as part of the principles of this class that I am working on bringing more into my life. As I read this quote and thought about what I would write here today, I realized that I have a great deal to be grateful for regarding not only reuniting with Gerard, but also about the adoption it self.

The quote tells me that "gratitude makes sense of our past"...for years I held onto the belief that I was not grateful for the adoption...I was actually down right angry with it...I was angry with myself...I was angry with my sweetheart...I was angry with not being able to have the "happily ever after"...I was angry with the way society viewed unmarried Mothers...I was angry with the system...

But today, because of the reuniting with Gerard, I am grateful...I am making sense of my past. I realize more than ever that the choice that was made in 1969 was made from my heart...and although I felt as if I was "forced" into that decision by a great many outside forces, I believe that it was the RIGHT thing to do for Gerard...for his parents...for myself. I doubt I would be feeling this way had we not reunited...

So here is my list of the 5 things that I am grateful for about adoption...

1. I am grateful that Gerard was a healthy baby, and that I did have 3 days with him before he was placed in the arms of his parents.

2. I am grateful for his parents...for being there for Gerard...for being there for me...for opening up their hearts to him.

3. I am grateful for the way that he was raised...I love the person that he is...I have said before some of that is genetic, but I believe that some comes from your environment too.

4. I am grateful for the opportunity that he had to go to camp, join scouts, grow up in a home with a brother and sister along with Mom and Dad and be connected to an extended family.

5. I am grateful for being reunited with him...for having a strong bond of love...for being an active part of his life and his families life...I am grateful for the life that we have now.

I release the anger...and I focus with new eyes on the gratitude...