Yesterday, I went to Wegmans to pick up a few things. My daughter was making dinner and one of the items she needed was non-alcoholic ginger beer. She wanted us to try a Moscow Mule. As I entered the Wine and Spirits section of Wegmans, you might as well have put me in the middle of the Black Forest, I was immediately lost—this area is not in my wheelhouse.

I searched, unsuccessfully, for quite some time until I saw a Wegmans worker. I asked him, “Could you help me find ginger beer?” I was not prepared for what came next. He responded with sign language. What I understood was that he didn’t know, but he’d try. We looked around, but to no avail. I could sense he was panicking a bit. He started to sweat. I felt so badly, I wanted him to know it was no big deal, but then he went off to get help. He was so sweet. I’m sure the masks made life close to impossible because he couldn’t read lips. Eventually he brought someone to help me. He smiled and waved, but I called him back with my wave. I showed him my phone, on which I had typed, “THANK YOU!” We both smiled, gave thumbs up, and waved again. As I watched him walk away, I thought about how challenging his life must be, especially now.

Life may not be easy for you right now. I know I get frustrated with how challenging 2020 has been and continues to be, but at some point we need to start being grateful. Most of our “boo-hoo” stories are that of convenience more than anything else. We are sick of Zoom calls, we are sad we can’t travel, we miss our friends, and more. But yesterday, I had the opportunity to try and operate without my voice for just 15 minutes. It was really difficult. What have you overlooked during 2020? What are you grateful for? Perspective has a way of changing everything. I looked through a different lens yesterday. You might want to give it a try.

With Gratitde,

Beth