Nine months ago, I didn't think I'd see this day. I was in a very profound depression and didn't think I would be alive for Christmas. At least, that was my plan. But things changed and the deep blackness lifted.

Today is my birthday and I am so happy to be alive!

I look back on the last nine months and at what I would have missed. Sure, big things like Christmas...but also some of the simpler things. Hugging my children, hearing my daughter in a clarinet concert solo, seeing my kids receiving awards from school, feeling the ocean sand beneath my feet, roasting marshmallows, getting to know a dear new friend, the sweetness of fresh raspberries...and I would have missed it all.

If you're in that black hole that I was in, and standing on the edge, please hang on. Know that things can change...moods can change...and life can be good again. I'm sure that at some point I will be in that dark place again, it's just the nature of the beast...but I will try to remember this day and how good it feels, and that I will be here again.

I wish you all health and peace today.