Well - here are my "reasons to be cheerful" (that was the title of a song by Ian and the Blockheads, a UK band. Anyone remember them?)

I love the fact that I have the bestest daughter in the whole wide world!

That I got a new bread making machine just with accumulated supermarket points - and our first loaf of bread made yummy toast!

Being on my own here in a foreign country as a single parent has forced me to get new initiatives going and make new friends, thus boosting my self esteem

(Here's an example - at bomb time, H declared that I was pathetic, I still 'couldn't speak a word of the local language'. Well, I WAS sadly lacking in the language dept, but he did somewhat exaggerate.

This week I got a call from a potential English language student, who wanted info about lessons. After a couple of minutes talking in the local language, he said, but you're not a native English speaker, are you, you sound like a local! Boy, did that make my day! Never mind that he thought my charges too high and didn't call back.

I had to assure him my mother tongue was NOT the local language, but thereafter my abilities wavered and I hesitated and made loads of mistakes! It seems my accent is very good and I fool some people in the initial stages of convo that I am local... )

I am being forced to grow up. I always thought of my H as the big procrastinator around here, but I can see I do a fair amount of it myself, as well as sweeping unpalatable things under the carpet, blaming others, being a perfectionist, etc etc. I am learning to take more responsibility, and also how to take the consequences of my actions on the chin.

I have also learned what is NOT my responsibility, which is a huge burden off my shoulders.

Well, that's enough for a start, I'm off to bed!

Livnlearn

PS I also have a roof over my head, food in the kitchen, friends, ways to make some money, a nice park nearby with a duck and her *sixteen* ducklings in it...

"The unexamined life is not worth living" - Socrates