Life has been a bit of a drama lately. I won't go into the gory details here but it hasn't been great. It's really tested me and thus I've been a bad and absent blogger. Still, it's onwards and upwards from here on in and I'm sure that there will be a light at the end of the tunnel.

So, let's look at the positives
1. Uni is over for the year!!! Yay. Studying law is fantastic and it is something I've always dreamed of doing, but it is a bit of a time-consuming passion. I have to admit that I love it though and I'm so glad that I'm doing it.
2. I have replanted the veggie garden (with the help of the puppies) and soon we will be harvesting lots of fresh lettuce, beans and carrots.
3. The great friendships I have - in real life and over the internet. Sometimes you forget that there are people who would miss you if you weren't around, but then there are those days where you feel their spirits supporting you.
4. The simple things that we take for granted - being able to see, to read, to speak, to write without fear of censorship or retribution.
5. The farm - it's officially ours and one day we can be self-sufficient. The fact that it's going to be a few years is good because we're able to get clear about what we're doing and make sure that we add to the planet.
6. Knowing what foods are good for me and which ones aren't - so many people just stumble through life without realising that the food that they eat makes a difference to their day.
7. Having access to fresh fruit and vegies as well as organic, grass fed meat. So many people are reliant on processed foods but here in Australia we have great fresh food just about on our doorstep.
8. Sunny days - being able to go for a walk with the boys or out in the garden and enjoy the sunshine.
9. Reading a good book - any good book, and taking the time to savour the words on the page, the visual delights of prose.
10. Having a loving husband and puppies that will go for a walk with me on a Sunday morning; even if I'm having a bad week, they'll give me hugs and happy tail wags.

You could be wondering why I felt the need to share the positives. Part of it is me trying to cope with stuff - I'm listing at least 10-20 things a day that I'm grateful for and focusing on that rather than everything else. The news these days is so full of doom and gloom - depression, recession, economic crises, the sicknesses, the scary elements of society and there is so little focus on the positives. Things that people can do to help themselves or better yet the happy stories - the friend helping someone through a bad day, the funny moments that you share with others.

So, this is a bit of a thank you to those who read this blog and to those on the board who are friends. I am sorry that I haven't been around much but I promise to do better from now on.