Giving Thanks Day 13: Tender Mercies

Late last night, some crap hit the fan. I'm not going to go into detail, but a couple of us in our apartment (and one of us in particular [not me]) went into crisis mode. It was (is) a very scary and difficult situation. And while it wasn't my personal problem, it was a problem for someone I loved, so I was stressing about someone who was stressing about someone else.

All day today at church, I was a little preoccupied because I wasn't sure what was going on. I didn't know how things were going to shake out. But throughout the day, I noticed small things that helped me recognize that I am still loved despite what was going on around me. At break the fast, a friend asked me how I was doing. When I responded, "I've been better," he didn't ask me what was going on. He simply gave me a hug and told me to let him know if I needed anything.

Later tonight, I was watching a show with some friends, and they just let me talk to them about what was going on. They were simply there for me and for my roommates and also offered their services in case we needed anything.

Then I went to ward prayer, where I had a good friend sit me down and ask me sincerely how I was doing. He truly wanted to know, which was so nice and so needed. It was comforting to know that someone was paying enough attention to go out of his way to make sure I was okay.

This doesn't even count the numerous random compliments that I got from multiple people today. I'm nearly positive that none of those people had any idea how much I needed their kind words, but they were said at just the time that I needed to hear them.

I'm so thankful for those tender mercies from the Lord. Even when I am going through something very difficult, I am reminded of the amazing people in my life and of the many incredible blessings that I do have.