Beauty All Around

Do you ever have one of those weeks when you are just stuck in a rut?

I do.

This week has been one of them – no apparent reason, nothing concrete to blame it on, and as some would say – it’s all just mental. I think I have just gone mental. I read into every little thing, I clean and clean the house to get out my frustrations (yes, this is where I have gone mental), I worry, I over-plan and over-analyze, constantly seek for reassurance and approval, and probably become a sub-par wife through it all.

Pretty awesome huh?

But then right in the middle of it all – my Heavenly Father reaches out to show his love for me.

Driving home last night, we saw the most spectacular sunset – I’m kind of a sucker for sunrises and sunsets. This morning as I was looking at the pictures I took (in a moving car, getting frustrated when I didn’t get it just the right spot, using my phone camera and probably being a gem through the whole thing) that the phrase came to me:

there is beauty all around

This phrase held a comical meaning in our house growing up because it was always said during the middle of a fight, but today it held a different meaning to me. Life is not always perfect, nor does it always go as planned – and even in the day to day it is often nothing spectacular – but life as it is, is something beautiful and meant to be enjoyed. My life is filled to the brim with beauty all around me – it comes in the shape of a wonderful husband (who shows one of the greatest examples of unconditional love among many other things), an amazing family (who are my best friends and my rock), a home that I share and create, the gospel that grounds me and directs me, and most importantly a Heavenly Father that is keenly aware of me and blesses me beyond belief.

I often feel that I am so undeserving of the blessings that are placed around me (although I probably take them for granted on too many occasions) but I know that my Heavenly Father loves me and blesses me with what I need and what he knows I need to grow. The divinity of our lives just astounds me if I just take the time to recognize it.

So for today – I’m soaking in the beauty all around and making the effort to appreciate the Lord’s hand in every aspect of my life (good and bad – knowing I need them both).