Count Your Blessings

"When you're worried and cannot sleep, just count your blessings instead of sheep. And you'll fall asleep, counting your blessings . . ."

I think that may be my favourite song from the movie White Christmas. It's a classic song that I used to sing with my sister a lot. I rarely had trouble sleeping whne I was younger, but now I seem to find that I have trouble sleeping a lot for various reasons. Mostly due to worry. I just can't seem to shut my brain off. As a music student, songs and riffs run through my head until I fall asleep. I can't listen to music anymore when I'm trying to sleep because it keeps me awake picking it apart and analyzing it. Even now when I begin to sing this song, I get caught up in the music of it.

It's an interesting concept to count your blessings to get yourself to sleep. Sometimes it takes away the worry and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes you begin to worry that you will lose the blessings that you have and don't want to sleep in case you wake up and find out that it was all a dream. That happened to me last night and will probably continue to happen every day that I get to spend at work. I love it here so much for so many reasons and every day comes with its own unique set of blessings and challenges.

I have a theory that if you fall asleep with a smile on your face, you can't help but wake up that way and you will have another good day. For me, the perfect way to end the day is giving thanks for the day and the amazing things that happened in it. It keeps me humble and thankful. There are days when I have felt that I have very little to be thankful for, but then I realize I have so much to rejoice for.

It's easy to let the small, frustrating things take over our day. It's easy to see only what hurt us and not what helped us grow. When we stop to count our blessings we see the opportunities that we have to use for the rest of our lives. The petty things become even pettier and the great things begin to rule our days. We get to see the beauty in each day and in those around us. The ability to appreciate that is so precious. We walk around thinking that so many people are out to get us and we neglect to see all that they are doing for us. So the next time that you have trouble sleeping, try counting your blessings. They're easier to find than sheep.