The gifts we have already
Christmas is less than two weeks away, but, for me, it’s Christmas all year long. I’d like to take this opportunity to give thanks for all of the gifts that I’ve received. They weren’t wrapped in shiny paper and, typicially, weren’t under a tree, but they were gifts nonetheless and far more valuable than anything that I might unwrap.
My family – I love my family. I was watching our two youngest decorate the tree this weekend, with holiday music playing in the background, and was awestruck with how fortunate I am. It’s not always easy and usually not perfect, but I am thankful for them every day. My hope is that I can be a good wife, mother and daughter and never take them for granted.
My husband – I know that he’s included in the family part above, but he deserves an extra thank you for any number of reasons. Before we met, if someone had asked me to describe my perfect partner, that description would have paled when compared with Tim. I was watching Mike Walsh’s interview with Brent Ozar about blogging. They were talking about the SQL Server community and how important it is because most people can’t go home to their partner and bounce work issues off of them. How lucky I am that I can! But even if I stopped being a DBA tomorrow, Tim would still be the best partner I could ever imagine.
Grandmothers – Also typically lumped in with the family group, but I needed to give grandmothers their own space. Tim and I both lost our maternal grandmothers this year and, for both of us, they were the last of our grandparents. We’re both thankful that we had all of this time with them and that our children had the opportunity to get to know their great-grandmothers. I hope someday to be as good of a grandmother as they were.
Employment – I have to admit that I’m not always as thankful for my job as I should be. Especially with the current economic environment, I need to be grateful that I have a job where I get to do what I enjoy. This position has given me many opportunities to become a better DBA and I’m grateful. They also provided the opportunity to attend the PASS Summit which was definitely one of the highlights of this year.
SQL Server Community – Hopefully you’ve had an opportunity to read some of my other posts on the SQL Server community. Tim and I are continually amazed by true sense of community that has been fostered by so many SQL Server professionals. I’m indebted to many of you for all of the learning and support that you’ve provided to me this year. I feel fortunate that I was able to meet so many of you in person at the PASS Summit. My wish for next year is that Tim can take part as well.
My faith – I have no doubt that all of the gifts that I’ve mentioned above and all of the gifts that were not mentioned were given to me by God. Without my faith, I would not only be without many of these gifts, but I would not have the capacity to value them as much as I do. On my own, I am definitely not worthy of everything that I have, but I am blessed each and every day. I recognize this and give thanks for it.
I hope that all of you have a wonderful holiday season.
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December 14th, 2009 at 12:05 pm #
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Mike Walsh
December 14th, 2009 at 12:08 pm #
All great things to be thankful for! Nice that you can go home and whine about work to Tim and he understands. I just get, “the look” (though my wife is awesome, she still listens to me rant at her and usually has a good non-techie response of how I should change my attitude in the situation instead.. she’s right too)
I like the closing sentiment a lot, also. To some who don’t understand it might sound like low self esteem but it isn’t at all, it’s recognizing your worth in God in spite of your actions
Thanks for sharing!