This is what I looked out onto as I ate my breakfast this morning…

This is one thing that I love about winter…I’m never up early enough to catch the sunrise during the summer months, but in the winter, I do catch it quite often. And it never fails to fill me with awe and peace. There is something so humbling when you’re in the presence of such miraculous beauty.

And if only I had my camera with me at work today! My studio looked out towards the northshore mountains; they were breathtakingly gorgeous today! White-capped blue mountains shining brilliantly in the sunlight… That, coupled with the fact that my kiddies are all working fairly hard these days preparing for upcoming recitals, made my day pass pleasantly and breezily.

Yesterday, I was reminded once again of the fragility of life and the need to embrace what you have, who you have, and who you are, here and and today. As I was leaving a student’s place, her mother came to talk to me and was visibly upset. Upon my asking if she was ok, she told me that a good friend of her daughter’s (not my current student, but her older sister who I also used to teach) just passed away after battling with cancer for the past 3 years. She was 23 years old.

I do not know her, have never met her, but my heart goes out to her family and friends. I feel so sad for my former student. She is so young herself (around 19), and a loss such as this will of course be life-changing.

And I’m reminded once again to be thankful. Thankful for all the incredible blessings I have in my life. To not take them for granted. To voice and show my love to the people I care about. And to not sweat the small stuff. Life really is too short for us not to cherish every moment.

And with that in mind, I’m going to go spend some quality time with my family and decorate our place for the coming holidays! And have cookies. Cuz cookies are an important part of cherishing life, being thankful, etc etc. Especially when they’re yummy and relatively healthy to boot. Can’t beat that! I have Mama Peas to thank for that again, with her Anytime Cookies! I followed her recipe pretty closely, with only minor adjustments; I used 2 TB of maple syrup instead of the 1/4 C unrefined sugar, substituted chopped dates for the dried apricots, and craisins instead of raisins. Not too sweet, perfect for that “anytime” you have a cookie craving. 🙂

And I just want to add that I’m very thankful to you, whoever’s reading this and who comes to visit my little corner of the blog world. 🙂 Now go have a cookie (or come over for one!) and hug a friend, family member, or furry pet!