It was a slog of a Summer. In fact since the end of October I have been racing at breakneck speed to keep up. A Summer season that included a desperate shortage of staff, ever increasing expectations of guests and a struggle to meet them all when juggling 15 other balls, including feeling responsible for the mental health and well being of our team under ever increasing work pressure. Visitors came to see us from near and far but we had no time to spend with them. School holidays came and went with barely a day off the property. I often felt bombarded by the number of questions that I needed to answer on a daily basis and felt like I was drowning. “Take one day at a time” became my mantra just to survive.
But in these past few weeks our business has been forced to stop and inadvertently I have been given the opportunity to take some time to breathe again. To get a grip and to refocus on what’s important. So although I am still being bombarded with a deluge of questions and decisions to be made regarding cancellations, postponements, staff concerns, loss of income and even the future of our business, I have done so with a totally different outlook.
Because I suddenly have the gift of gratitude. When I watch the news and see the chaos around the world, I realise how damn lucky we are to be living on this little island at the bottom of the world. It means that the events that have unfolded around the globe over the past few months are only just now starting to reach us. Its coming here too but it means we know what to expect. Meaning that we are ready and that we have been able to take positive action. We are currently experiencing massive upheaval all around NZ and it’s unprecedented times which requires change management on a major scale. It means loss of income and possibly the end of the line to many businesses in our industry. Which in turn means loss of jobs and uncertainty as to what the future holds for many families. Its scary times! But I do know that we are in the best place possible to ride this storm.
So ironically for the first time in months, I realise I am truly blessed. Blessed to have this business and property with a garden full of produce, blessed to be part of a community, blessed to have my health, blessed to have our kids here with us, blessed to be able to walk the dog and appreciate the changing colours of Autumn.
Lets focus on what we have rather than what we are having to sacrifice. The gift of gratitude.