What are my reasons to be cheerful?

I am quite late to the cheerful party this week.

This time last week, we were waiting for news and not long after we had it. It was not good news. My husband, an ex-serviceman, after 7 years of loyal service to the Royal British Legion (@PoppyLegion on Twitter) is to be made redundant.

Of course it takes no working out that there is a huge need for welfare support for current and former service personnel and their families. Apparently they think my husband and lots of his colleagues can’t offer that despite the fact they seem to have been doing so quite well for years on end. Yes, we are let down and trying not to give in to feelings of bitterness particularly as the Legion intends to recruit brand new staff to offer welfare support.

The weekend was tense with both of us wondering what to do and how to react.

Huge thanks go to the many Twitter, blogger and other friends who reached out to offer support.

So I am digging deep this week to find the smile stuff.

1. Most people seem to think that my husband’s redundancy offers an amazing opportunity to reinvent his and our lives.
I am starting to believe they may well be right and when the clouds clear, we may be very cheerful indeed. I may put my husband’s CV or an idea of what he can do on this blog. What do you think?

2. I went to gardening club and managed to enjoy it a bit better. I did some digging and delighted the children by finding a bouncy ball and a marble under the soil.

3. I have got rid of my late Dad’s clothing that I had been wearing from time to time. Today, my son has taken a box into school with plaques, my Dad’s funeral order of service, photographs and medals so that he can talk about an event at a place of worship. Both of these things make me thing that another corner is turned on the grief front.

4. A lovely opportunity has come my way by me being a bit more proactive. This makes me realise I need to take action more often and also that I have a lot of people who will cheer me along as I do so. Thank you.

5. I have treated the children a lot this week just to get over a sense of security to them with the news of their Dad’s redundancy.

6. We had a lovely family barbecue on Sunday evening with me taking notice of my husband who explained even in troublesome times, we need to keep a sense of balance.

7. On Bank Holiday Monday, we visited Mablethorpe in Lincolnshire. What a wonderful place! Glorious sandy beach and dunes. A seal and animal sanctuary. A train on the beach. Crazy golf and so much more. Good old-fashioned family fun!

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