Fireworks to Start 2018

My husband, Mark, and I chose to have a quiet, at-home New Year’s Eve to usher in 2018. We snuggled on the couch with our two dogs and binge watched an Amazon series. Mark poured two small glasses of champagne, we watched the Times Square ball drop at midnight, and then it was January 1. It was a sweet, peaceful start to the New Year.

Then January 2 happened. Mark had a heart attack. His client called me at 10:10 a.m. (give or take a few seconds) to inform me that an ambulance was on its way to her office. My vegan, non-smoker, daily walker, no family history of heart disease, healthy weight husband was flat on his back waiting for the EMTs to arrive.

Really? Yes, really.

Long story short… Mark is doing great. Everyone involved did their jobs perfectly. The four EMTs did all the procedures and evaluations necessary while on route to the hospital. The cardiology team was waiting in the ER for him, and rushed him upstairs to start their work. These medical wonders saved his life and fixed him up.

My takeaway is pure joy, not for what happened, but for the optimal outcome. Why did this happen to Mark? Because s*** happens. There are no guarantees, even if we take all the right precautions.

This explosive start to 2018 reinforced my already strong sense of gratitude:

·       Grateful Mark is alive.

·       Grateful we live where an ambulance can arrive within a few minutes.

·       Grateful we live near many good hospitals.

·       Grateful we have health insurance.

·       Grateful to friends and family who care.

·       Grateful Mark is alive (worth repeating).

Now it’s your turn to start off your new year with your own gratitude list. Don’t wait for an explosive event. Keep writing until you get to at least ten items. You’re allowed to put your pen down when you reach one hundred.

Being grateful is a large part of embracing the moment, the here and now. Savor it. Situations can change in the blink of an eye. Or a heart under duress.

So far, 2018 has been wonderful. I still have Mark, and he is better off than he was on New Year’s Eve.

Now we can watch season two of our Amazon series. Together.

Cue the fireworks.