Life Lesson #1: Have a Grateful Heart
by
eulapanda
- 9:53 AM
Not a lot of people may know this but a few years back I was able to go to America, the so-called "land of milk and honey", to visit my dad who was working as a Special Education teacher in California.
It was Christmas break on my fourth year of college when I first visited the place. It sucked having to miss the last Christmas party of your college life but at that time, the prospect of going on an international trip for the first time - all by myself at that - was an opportunity I didn't want to miss. The second time was two days after I took the licensure examination but I'll talk more about this some other time.
Life Lesson #1: Have a Grateful Heart
People would say I am lucky. The chance of waking up on the other side of the world isn't something we get to enjoy every time we want to. But I would rather say I am blessed; blessed to have visited a country we only see in the movies or daydream about.. But more importantly, I feel blessed to have learned essential life lessons that would mold how I see life now that I am an adult.
I remember my first international plane ride - I took a direct flight from Manila to Los Angeles with a quick stopover in Guam via Philippine Airlines. It was a long ride with a lot of bladder holding (as I didn't want to bother the man sitting on the aisle seat) and numerous hustling about to get to that "perfect sleeping position" on a cramped economy seat. And it doesn't help either that someone was snoring so loud that a baby couldn't help but cry all night.
I was alone, tired, and grumpy.
But when I woke up the next day to the sound of the flight attendant's "Good morning" coupled with a fresh warm towel to wash the face with (I didn't figure out yet how to use the warm towel not until I saw someone do it) and my seatmate smiling at me, that I realized life isn't all that bad after all. I smiled at this thought and couldn't help but be thankful as a childhood dream unfolds right before my very eyes: waking up on a crisp December morning with snowflakes glistening outside my window.
Let's all try to have a grateful heart.
:)
