I keep thinking about gratitude and resilience. On Thursday we headed out to the Oregon coast with two fully loaded cars for a surf getaway. We planned on staying a week. And, despite checking before we left, when we got there the air quality in Manzanita was worse than in Portland. So, we disappointedly turned our two fully loaded cars around and took our tired toddler home and spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking.

Despite the disappointment, I decided that the only way out was through and began searching for a little bit of gratitude. Gratitude that we didn't have to leave our cats for a week when fires were burning out of control all over the state. That we were all home together, that we were safe, and if we needed to evacuate we could do it all together. Gratitude that we have a roof over our head, food to eat and our health. Gratitude that my husband immediately went to work on making the house as safe as he could.

Sometimes it's back to basics. Don't get me wrong, I'm not thrilled that we're not running along the beach at the ocean and letting our baby play in the sand all day, but I will say that cracking the door open to gratitude, even if I have to fake it at first, really is a game changer for me.

Sometimes back to basics is a good thing.

-Mary