Counting our blessings

It’s been a little over 4 months since my father in-law had a stroke. It was an incredibly scary moment and resulted in Sophia and I spending a month out in Croatia as he recovered enough to fly back to the U.S. If you told us that on March 1st, my father in-law would be where he was at back in October, we’d be ecstatic.

Back then, we had no idea if he’d be able to walk or even eat by himself again. Today, he’s pretty much at around 90% of his physical and cognitive level that he was at before. We’re incredibly fortunate to have him here, yet alone be in a position like this to live a normal life again.

I’ve learned a lot over the last few months. It’s again another reminder that life is precious and we can never predict when things can change quickly. Our parents are unfortunately getting older and they won’t be here forever. If things go well, I’ll outlive my parents by many years. That’s a sad thing to think about, but it’s the truth.

Hanging out with my parents or in-laws is not always easy. Whether it’s travel cross country, less than ideal working conditions, or just simply a long winded story that leads to nowhere, most of us have a lot to be annoyed by when hanging out with family. But at the end of the day, it’s family.

I’ve had a new found appreciation of my family and in-laws in recent years, especially in light of the almost tragedy. I’m trying to enjoy all the time we have left with them. Perhaps one day I’ll be lucky enough to have children that want to spend time with me as well.