Ongoing journey of gratitude...

During the beginning of the Ebola outbreak, which was one of the most challenging times for me both personally and professionally, I embarked on a journey of gratitude. Everyday I paused, focused on the positive and wrote down one thing I was grateful for. I ended up with 365 moments of thankfulness. This journey helped me grow in gratitude and have a more positive outlook on life. At the start of 2019 I decided to continue this journey. Here’s week 1 of my moments of thankfulness! 

Day 1. Thankful to catch up with my friend Anna over a New Year’s dinner

Day 2. Thankful for fresh fruit, yoghurt and a blender = delicious smoothies 

Day 3. Thankful for my parents, 45 years of marriage and their ongoing commitment to each other 

Day 4. Thankful for a friend who came to visit when I wasn’t feeling well - thanks Suzanne

Day 5. Thankful for inspirational people in my life who encourage me to live and love better

Day 6. Thankful for a luxurious overnight in a hotel that was gifted to me

Day 7. Thankful that the National Emergency Medical Service (NEMS) is up & running and their ambulance was able to transfer two infants to the Children's hospital for us since our ambulance is temporarily out of service.

#2019 #makingitcount #gratitude #momentsofthankfulness #alwaysanadventure #ihaveamazingfriends #ilovemyfamily #livelovelaugh #actjustlylovemercywalkhumbly 

Feeling thankful in February...

Here are my moments of thankfulness in February:

1. Thankful for a good public transport system in Freetown that makes it very easy to get to and from work.
2. Thankful for the opportunity to support families of children with cleft lip/palate defects.
3. Thankful for a fabulous first day of our international church retreat at Tokeh palms. The location, food, sun, sea, swimming pool and bonfire were great and it was fantastic to spend time with our amazing church community.
4. Thankful for some great times on day 2 of the retreat and for Faith church who blessed us with this special weekend away.
5. Thankful that a Sierra Leonean medical doctor joined our OPC team. I’m looking forward to working with her!!
6. Thankful for amazing friends who know how to encourage and say the right thing at the right time.
7. Thankful for mosquito coils that protect me from mosquito bites while studying!
8. Thankful that Haley arrived back this evening. It was great to catch up after not seeing her for 7 weeks.
9. Thankful that Lunch is provided at AWC even thought it usually ends up being a very late lunch! It was potato leaves today, one of my favourites.
10. Thankful to receive news from friends that they have started fostering a little boy. Amazing!
11. Thankful for a fun time at an international dance event last night, especially since my Eritrean flat mate took part in the Ethiopian dance! So fun.
12. Thankful for a lovely evening with friends yesterday - delicious pancakes and lots of catch up time.
13. Thankful for a new colleague who arrived from Malawi to help out in the clinic for the next 6 months.
14. Thankful for a great group of friends at Bible Study.
15. Thankful that one of my patients is finally fever free after starting TB treatment a week ago. He’s growing well too!
16. Thankful to meet baby Bah - a precious child who is being fostered by friends of mine.
17. Thankful to be part of an outstanding Enable the Children beach gathering. I’ve been closely involved with this organisation since the beginning in 2007 and it’s awesome to see it continue to flourish.
18. Thankful for international church and reflecting on this season of Lent.
19. Thankful for a public holiday - brunch with friends and extra study time. Hurray for Armed Forces Day.
20. Thankful to have been able to spend every Tuesday at the Kroo Bay Health Centre for the past 6 months. Sadly due to programme changes I won’t be able to attend as frequently but should still be able to be present every other week.
21. Thankful for naps even though I should have been working on an assignment
22. Thankful for precious time with friends - quality time spent with a friend before she travels, with an amazing sunset view, pizza and cocktails.
23. Thankful to be able to introduce two families to each other who have children with cleft lip and palates - so encouraging!
24. Thankful to be able to attend a baby naming ceremony and dedication.
25. Thankful to be a part of a 24-7 prayer event focussing on the upcoming Sierra Leonean elections.
26. Thankful for much better electricity these days - thanks to a ship off shore generating power - hopefully this lasts beyond elections.
27. Thankful for a delicious chicken, mango, sesame, avocado salad at Swiss Spirit hotel.
28. Thankful to have completed module 1 of my MPH. Wow, that was a busy 12 weeks. I’m excited about a 2-week study break.

For moments of thankfulness in January 2018 see: http://sandralako.blogspot.com/2018/01/moments-of-thankfulness.html

#momentsofthankfulness #somuchtobegratefulfor #embracingalifestyleofgratitude #thankfulness #bethankful #thanksgiving #February2018 #2018makeitcount #alwaysanadventure #actjustlylovemercywalkhumbly

Moments of thankfulness...

A good friend of mine, who I met in Sierra Leone, has been an inspiration to me for a number of years now. She was full of smiles and encouragement. She loved to laugh and have a good time. Even after she was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago, she kept a positive outlook on life. She used to laugh at my blog posts, especially the ones about the challenges of living in Sierra Leone, and say how it made her more grateful. She introduced me to the book “One thousand gifts” by Ann Voskamp and shared about the importance of embracing a lifestyle of gratitude. The last time we spoke, as she was packing up to go back to Canada for good, she gave me her copy of the book. I still read it often and remember Jen’s smile and I continue to be inspired to live a life of gratitude. It's not easy, and I still complain a lot, but I am trying!

In 2014, at the start of the Ebola outbreak, I decided to write down something I was thankful for every single day, for a year. I did this so that I would have a little bit of reflection time everyday and focus on the positive things in life during a very challenging time. My initial month of postings can be found here: The first 30 days of thankfulness...

This past Christmas, I was reminded of the importance of being grateful at all times and was once again inspired to create a list of gratitude. It’s in these very moments of thankfulness that we experience beauty, peace and grace.

Here are my moments of thankfulness in January 2018:

1. I went on my first walk on the beach in 2018 - thankful for my parents & beach walks.
2. I’m not crazy about going to the dentist but I am thankful for good dental care in The Netherlands.
3. Thankful for slumber parties with my niece & teddy bears.
4. Thankful for freshly baked stroopwafels - yum.
5. Thankful for grapes, blueberries and strawberries - oh how I will miss you.
6. Thankful to go on a city walk in Middelburg - tourist in my own city & for hot chocolate and apple pie.
7. Thankful for an amazing missions weekend at church - inspiring, encouraging and such a blessing!
8. Baking with one of my nieces is always fun - thankful for time with Zoey & making blueberry muffins.
9. Thankful for time spent with my mom and sister - I will miss family.
10. Yay. I’m back in Sierra Leone and very thankful for a safe and smooth return.
11. Thankful that day 1 in the clinic went well, even though I was on my own since my colleague is sick. 
12. I was thankful it was Friday :)
13. Thankful to spend time with an amazing Dutch/Ghanaian family here.
14. 38 years ago my parents left the Netherlands and moved onto the M/V Anastasis. I was 2 years old. I’m thankful for their courage and perseverance and the amazing childhood I had.
15. Thankful to connect with an MPH classmate through WhatsApp- it’s nice to be connected a bit more since we don’t have face-to-face classes.
16. Thankful to start up the Kroo Bay clinic again. Sadly our first patient was critical and died at the Children’s hospital 12 hours later. A stark reminder of the need for the clinic.
17. Thankful to see all of my friends at Bible Study.
18. Thankful to see Abubakar and Mbalu again - they finally passed the 5kg mark this week. Hurray for growth.
19. Thankful for an amazing team at work and thankful that we completed all of the staff reviews today.
20. Thankful for time at River 2 beach with friends to escape work and study!
21. Thankful for the international church group.
22. Thankful I survived 2x8 min of running 😉
23. Thankful for electricity after not having it all evening/night on Monday.
24. Thankful for tea and chocolate!
25. Thankful I survived a 20 min non-stop run.
26. Thankful for quality time with a friend and trying Gigibonta’s pizza for the first time.
27. Thankful for a games night with friends - we were so close to saving the world too...maybe next time.
28. Thankful for a Sunday afternoon beach walk with Suzanne - it had been a while.
29. Despite a very challenging case at work today I am thankful to be able to support the patient’s family through the child’s illness and the difficult situation they are in.
30. Thankful to have submitted another individual assignment for my MPH.
31. Thankful that a plant I’ve been watering back to life for the past week has green leaves shooting up today - it’s a great symbol of new beginnings.

#momentsofthankfulness #somuchtobegratefulfor #embracingalifestyleofgratitude #thankfulness #bethankful #thanksgiving #January2018 #2018makeitcount #alwaysanadventure #actjustlylovemercywalkhumbly