My lot in life

I’m a complainer.

Unless this is your first time reading my blog, you know that by now. You’ve probably known that for a while. Poor the Romgi, he knows it best of all. I think maybe I just enjoy complaining.

It isn’t a very good trait.

To make up for it, today I want to tell you how great my life is. Not perfect, mind you – we may never get there. But it’s pretty fabulous. Here’s why.

1. Family. I come from a really marvelous family and I definitely love the Romgi’s family, too. Best of all is our own little family. Have you met the Bwun? Oh man, what a kid. Allow me to gush: the Bwun is the cutest, sweetest, smartest little guy and I a-dore him. Then there’s jr. Absolutely beautiful, mellow (even more than the Bwun was)…there are few things in the world better than her little smile. And to have the Romgi with me in this grand adventure – did I luck out or what?

2. Education. I suppose it’s my fault for putting it off so long, but doing school right now is quite a challenge and sacrifice for both me and the Romgi. It means a lot less time we get to spend together, and a lot more stress. But BYU has a major I find interesting, unbelievably low tuition, and a good atmosphere for me. I can’t wait until next spring when the Romgi and I both graduate. His degree will be a little (or a lot) more impressive, but I like to imagine that even my bachelor’s degree will be something nifty considering what I will have gone through to get it.

3. Shelter. We live in a basement. There’s no real oven here. Some nights we have jr sleep in the living room because it’s more convenient. You know what? I love our quirky little apartment. It works amazingly well for us. True, the whole place is usually a disaster, but blame that on me, not the apartment. Our ward is incredible, there’s a jetted tub in our bathroom, and we have our own washer and dryer. I’m not sure we could ask for much more (except maybe an oven. Maybe).

4. Clothes. Last week I put a load of darks through the wash, and when they were dry I discovered that the Bwun had put a black fountain pen into the laundry basket and it went in with the clothes. Almost the entire load was ruined, aside from some pajamas. (You do have to wonder why the clothes that didn’t matter were untouched by the ink, right?) Today the Romgi and I replaced and upgraded our ink-stained clothes. The Romgi has barely bought any new clothes since we got married, which is coming up on 4 years. He desperately needed a wardrobe pickup. We left the Bwun with his grandpa and went shopping – jr was with us, but it was almost like a date. Now the Romgi and I both have killer clothes.

5. Food. The Romgi is the best cook. Plus we got a loaf of homemade bread that is divine as toast for eating with poached eggs.

6. Perspective. I realize my complaining makes it hard to believe, but I have a decent idea of how very blessed and lucky I am. Many people in the world are suffering physically, mentally, and emotionally. They don’t have either their temporal or spiritual needs met. By most standards my life is not only easy but beautiful. Of course I feel like I have plenty of challenges to face, but I also see how peaceful and content my world is.

7. Books. For a few months last year, I didn’t want to read at all. I was sick of books and sick of reading. Even though I’m a lot busier this year, I’m making time to go to the library (especially with the Bwun) and allow myself some relaxation and mental escape through books. No reading challenges this year, so I’d love to hear any and all recommendations for what to read next. I might even join a book group!

I also love your comments. It continually surprises me what random readers are lurking in the background. If you’re reading, let me know. If you have a blog, let me know. We’ll be blog buddies.

What are you grateful for today? Or would you rather complain? It’s fine by me if you do. Like I said – I’m a complainer, too.