I had to get this written down before my day kicked into high gear, so this is a little choppy, simply a stream of thoughts and emotions.

Remember to look around.

This morning I was gifted more reminders to stop and look around at all the good surrounding me. Carli didn’t jump right out of bed today, she could sleep in a little bit since she had a doctor appointment later in the morning.  Look Around Moment #1:  Carli has a primary care physician who specializes in transgender health. She also has access to health insurance that pays for hormone replacement therapy, counseling, and speech therapy. Carli sees her primary care physician every three months. Look Around Moment #2: Carli has a job that provides sick leave and vacation days so she doesn’t lose pay every time she sees one of her health care providers.

As I was getting ready for work myself, I looked across the room and just couldn’t resist crawling back under the covers for just a few more minutes.  Looking over at Carli, cuddling Opal who has her cute little head laying softly on Carli’s cheek…Look Around Moment #3: The human being sleeping there, curled up with a puppy, is simply amazing.  She is kind and gentle, brave and strong, and her heart gets bigger every day.  I love her more every day.

Checking my phone I see the text messages our sons sent me last night. Look Around Moment #4: We have two intelligent, kind, resourceful, loving sons who we talk to almost every day.  There are no parents more proud of their children than we are of ours.

Hopped in my car to leave for work and when I started it the rattling noise it was making yesterday was gone.  I spent three hours at the car dealership yesterday to figure it out. They were attentive and helpful and didn’t charge me for the visit. Look Around Moment #5: I also have employment that allows me take care of car troubles or other necessities when they pop up instead of having to wait or work it around a difficult schedule.

My family is far more fortunate than many others.  Careers, family, health care, housing, all things we sometimes take for granted are only a dream for so many people. We are privileged and we recognize this privilege comes with great responsibility. We do our best to call out racism, misogyny, bigotry, inequality, and hatred when we see it.  We advocate for people whose voices are frequently ignored, knowing that our privilege opens doors that are unfairly closed for others. We make our lives as transparent as possible so others may see that relationships can stay intact and evolve after a partner transitions. But in doing all of this I feel like we forget to look at each other sometimes.  We forget to acknowledge the joy and beauty that is right in front of us because we are intent on fighting against a massively flawed system and a society that appears to be rapidly moving in the wrong direction.  We forget to look around.  This morning I looked, and I love what I see.